lTif(iTi"natloTi foT- 

by 
18 56 





Glass ___^ 

Book__//^ 



INFORMATION 



KANZAS IMMIGRANTS: 



PREPARED BY 



■,a- 



THOMAS H. WEBB, 



SECRETARY OF THE NEW ENGLAND EMIGRANT AID CO. 



SIXTH EDITION REVISED AND ENLARGED. 



BOSTON: 

PRINTED BY ALFRED MUDGE AND SON, 

No. 21 School Street. 

18 56. 




^^ ^^f 



y JDffice 0f ll]t lleto (gitglnni €imgnmt Jiii Campn2, 

►" No. 3 Winter Street, 

HEAD OF THE SECOND FLIGHT OF STAIRS, ON THE LEFT. 



OFFICEHS, 

ELECTED JUNE 1st, 1855 



PBESIDENT. 

JOHN CARTER BROWN, of Providence, E. I. 

VICE PRESIDENTS, 

ELI THAYER, of Worcester; J. M. S. WILLIAMS, of Qimbridge, Mass. 

TREASURER. 

AMOS A. LAWRENCE, of Boston. 

SECRETARY. 

THOMAS H. WEBB, of Boston. 

DIRECTORS. 

Wm. B. Spooner, of Boston ; Samuel Cabot, Jr., M. D., of Boston ; John 
Lowell, of Boston; Le Baron Russell, M. D., of Boston; Charles J. Higginson, 
of Boston; Wm. J. Rotch, of Neiv Bedford; J. P. Williston, of Northampton ; 
Wm. Dudley Pickman, of Salem; R. P. Waters, of Beverly ; R. A. Chapman, 
of Sprinr/fieM ; John Nesmith, of Jewell; Moses Davenpoi't, of Newburyport ; 
Charles H. Bigelow, of Lawrence ; Nathan Durfee, of Fall River ; Wm. Willis, 
of Portland, Me. ; "Franklin Muzzy, of Bangor, Me. ; John D. Lang, of Vnssal- 
boro\ Me. ; E. P. Walton, ofMontpelier, Vt. ; Jos. A. Gilmore, of Concord, N. H. ; 
Ichabod Goodwin, of Portsmouth, N. II. ; Thomas M. Edwards, of Keene, 
N. II. ; Albert Day, of Hartford, it. 

EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE. 

Messrs. J. M. S. Williams, Eli Thayer, John Lowell, S. Cabot, Jr., M. D., 
R. P. Waters, Le Baron Russell, M. D., and Charles J. Higginson. 



SECRETARY'S ADDRESS, 

THOMAS H. WEBB, M. D. 

Secretary New England Emigrant Aid Company, 

BOSTON, MASS 



fc^s- 



\M 



2,(, 



Office of the N. E. Emigrant Aid Co. 
No. 3 Wifiter St., Boston, March 15, 1856 



} 



In answer to the numerous inquiries respecting 
Kanzas, daily addressed to the Secretary both by letter 
and ill person, the following pamphlet has been prepared, 
which contains as concise and definite replies as can 
conveniently be furnished at short notice. It is scarce- 
ly necessary to say that no methodic arrangement has 
been attempted. I would premise that — 

The Company has not endeavored, neither does it 
now endeavor, to entice people to go to Kanzas, — 
it has not paid, neither does it intend to pay, in whole 
or in part, the expenses of transporting individuals to; 
or of supporting thefn after their aii^ival in, the Ter- 
ritory. 

Its course has been and still is, to use all the means 
in its power, to collect the best and most reliable infor- 
mation relative to the Territory, and furnish the same 
to those desiring it. Each individual having received, 
and duly weighed the information, must then decide 
for himself, whether or not it is advisable to immigrate. 
If the decision be to go, the Company will do all in its 
power to speed him on his destined way, and afford 
him such facilities in locating as it may from time to 
time be enabled to do. The principal advantages to 
be derived through the Company are, diminution in 
the rates of fare, — protection, as far as possible, from 
the imposition practised on the unwary by runners, 
speculators, and others, — advice, through agents in 
Kanzas, relative to selecting suitable sites for settle- 
ments, and (what we deem the paramount advantage,) 
the opportunity of forming communities at once, and 
thus, early enjoying, all the benefits resulting from 
association, instead of locating, as is usually the case, 
at wide-spread distances, and in consequence, genera- 
tions passing by, before any of the benefits and piivi- 



6 INFORMATION AND ADVICE 

the bnggage is checked, must be sure to have it at- 
tended to, and to receive the duplicate or counter check 
from the Baggage Master. 

Change of Baggage. — Whenever, on the route, a 
change of baggage is to take place, each individual 
should, for the greater security, personally see that his 
own is carried with the rest to the railroad or boat, as 
the case may be. If mislaid, prompt notice shonld be 
given to the Agent having charge of the Party, that 
he may at once notify the Conductor, or other suitable 
Railroad or Steamboat Officer. 

Freight. — When freight is to be sent, the owner or 
his agent should obtain from the Transportation or 
Forwarding Agent at Boston, or at the other places of 
forwarding, a receipt in duplicate for its safe delivery 
at St. Louis. On the owners arrival at Sl^ Louis, if in 
advance of the freight, he should leave one of the re- 
ceipts with some forwarding house, that of Messrs. F. 
A. Hunt & C0.5 No. 19 Levee, is recommended, who 
will take charge of shipping it to Kanzas City, or Leav- 
enworth, for the usual commission. The owner should 
not pay freightage until the goods are delivered to him 
or his order, at the place designated. 

The packages, if to be sent by the Michigan Cen- 
tral Railroad route, should be 



[Owner's name here.] 
marked R. R. Kanzas City. 

Care of C. & M. R. R. 

Chicago. 
To the care of 

F. A. Hunt & Co., 19 Levee, St. Louis. 

If the Lake Shore Railroad be preferred, substitute 
in the square) the following, viz : 

Lake Shore Route. 
Time Contract. 




TO KANZAS IMMIGRANTS. 7 

Packages, marked as above, can be forwarded from 
the Freight Depot of the Western Railroad, Lincohi 
Street. If forwarded from the Fitchburg Freight 
Depot, substitute in the square, N. for W., or prefix 
American to Lake Shore Route. 

\( the Ncio York cj* £Jrie Railroad is preferred, sub- 
stitute, in the square, N. Y. & E., for W. & C, and 
send the packages to the Providence Railroad Depot, 
Pleasant Street, near the foot of the Common. 

All articles not immediately wanted, had better, for 
economy's sake, be sent as freight. The charge per 
100 lbs. from Boston to St. Louis, will be about $2.50 ; 
average time 18 days. 

Shipping Freight. — It will be still more economi- 
cal, and far better, where the quantity of freight is 
large, to ship it to New Orleans^ and thence send it by 
steamer to St. Louis. In this case, mark as before, 
with 7ianie and desttnation ; and in addition. Care of 

E. M. Daly & Co., New Orleans, to he forwarded to 

F. A. Hunt 6j' Co., No. 19 Levee, St. Louis. Such 
freight left with Messrs. Allen & Weltch, No. 129 State 
Street, Boston, will be duly shipped. Freight to New 
Orleans, 5 to 6 cents per cubic foot ; $2 to $3 per ton ; 
barrels, capable of holding 150 lbs., 25 to 30 cents 
each. Cost from New Orleans to St. Louis about 50 
cents the 100 lbs. Time, usually 20 days to New Or- 
leans, and about the same thence to St. Louis. .Insur- 
ance the whole distance, 2J per cent. 

No Pledge Required. — The emigrants come under 
no written or verbal obligation or pledge to the Com- 
pany ; they leave here free agents, and it is hoped they 
will continue so to be. Still, knowing that the great 
object is to secure freedo^n for all, it is presumed that no 
one will be so dishonest as to avail of the advantages 
and privileges that may be secured through the Com- 
pany's means, and then war against its principles. 

If, however, Parties entertaining adverse sentiments, 
desire to be forwarded by the Company, it will be done 
cheerfully, under the full conviction that when they see 



8 INFORMATION AND ADVICE 

the great benefits, and decided advantages resulting from 
free labor, a great majority of them will become worthy 
and efficient allies. 

The Company does expect, however, that all who go 
out binder its auspices will do so with the intention of 
becoming actual settlers. 

Neither is it necessary for an individual who purposes 
removing to Kanzas, to become a member of the Com- 
pany, in order to join one of its Parties. Unless such 
an one has ample means, instead of subscribing for 
Stock, let him husband his means, in order to make 
them as available as possible after he arrives at his new 
abode. 

What to take, and where to buy. — Most articles 
not owned, had better not be purchased prior to reach- 
ing St. Louis or Kanzas City. Good clothing, suited 
for service, not show, such as is adapted for this section 
of the Country, also bedding, (not beds, on account of 
their bulk,) and perhaps some choice articles of furni- 
ture, had better be sent along ; but most of the necessa- 
ries for house-keeping, also agricultural implements, &c., 
can be obtained on reasonable terms at the places a^bove 
designated. Indeed, all ordinary articles of house-keep- 
ing, husbandry, &c.. may be now obtained in Lawrence, 
Leavenworth, and probably some other settlements 
within the Territory, on as reasonable terms as else- 
where. — Mechanics, who will require their tools imme- 
diately, had better take them along at baggage prices ; 
time being to them money, they will save by this 
course. 

Cattle. — The price of good working cattle, horses, 
cows, <fcc., is nearly the same in Kanzas and its vicinity 
as in New England ; perhaps rather cheaper. The price 
of cows has heretofore ranged from $25 to ^35; oxen 
per yoke, from $50 to $100 ; horses from $75 to $100 
each ; common sheep from $1,50 to $2,50 each. 

Consult Company's Agents. — In regard to these and 
other purchases, as well as for information about the 
Territory, desirable places for settlement, &c., Parties 



TO KANZAS IMMIGRANTS. VJ 

on their arrival at Kanzas City, are recommended to 
consult Samuel C. Pomeroy, Esq., one of the Company's 
Agents, who will at all times, cheerfully and promptly 
furnish reliable information, and conscientiously advise 
them how, in his judgment, they are most likely to 
advance their own interests, and aid in accomplishing 
the prime object had in view by the Company. Dr. 
Charles Robinson, at Lawrence, now favorably known 
to the Public, by his judicious course, and discreet man- 
agement during the late invasion of that settlement, and 
Charles H. Branscomb, Esq., both active, highly effi- 
cient, and perfectly reliable Agents, will counsel and 
advise all who apply to them : and any other Agents, 
who may be from time to time employed, will be 
instructed to offer every facility that consistently can 
be done, to all who migrate under the Company's aus- 
pices. 

Means. — As regards the amount of means requisite 
to make a person '' comfortable," people will vary m 
their estimate, according to their ideas of what consti- 
tutes comfort. With a hundred dollars clear of expen- 
ses, wherewith to commence territorial life, a person of 
good moral habits, and reasonable and moderate desires, 
should bo able always to keep above want, whatever 
pursuit or avocation he may follow, whether that of a 
farmer, mechanic, or laborer; provided he is blessed 
with ordinary health, and proves active, energetic, and 
industrious. 

Land, how acquired. — The land is to be purchased 
of the United States, at $1,25 per acre ; 160 acres and 
no more can be taken, and this only by an actual settler 
in person ; the individual must be a citizen of the 
United States, or have filed his declaration of intention 
to become such, and either be the head of a family, or 
a widow, or a single man, over the age of 21 years. 
Payment may be made at any time after the Govern- 
ment Survey has been completed, but need not be until 
immediately prior to the commencement of the public 
sale in that district where the person has fixed his loca- 



10 INFORMATION AND ADVICE 

tion ; the money cannot be paid portions at a time ; 
locations may be made any where, save on the Govern- 
ment, or Indian reserves, or on certain tracts, which, by 
Law, are exempted from the operations of the Pre-emp- 
tion Act; the individual must be an inhabitatit of the 
tract, and, in person, have made a settlement, and erect- 
ed a dwelling thereon ; within three months after it has 
been surveyed by the United States, it must be duly 
entered at the Registry office of the District within 
which it is located. 

The Commissioner of the General Land Office has 
prescribed the subjoined form, for the information of 
those who desire to avail of the right to secure land 
under the pre-emption law. This form of declaration 
may be written or printed, must be signed by the ap- 
plicant, in presence of a witness, who must certify to 
it by his signature, and it must then be delivered at or 
transmitted to the Office of the Territorial Surveyor 
General. No variation must be made in the form, 
which is as follows, viz : 

DECLARATORY STATEMENT FOR CASES WHERE THE LAND IS 
-NOT SUBJECT TO PRIVATE ENTRY. 

I, , of being have, on the dayof , A. D. 18 — , settled 

and improved the quarter of section number , in townsliip number 

, of range number , in the district of lands subject to sale at the land 

office at , and containing acres, which land has not yet been offered at 

public sale, aiul thus rendered subject to private entry; and I do hereby declare 
my intention to claim the said tract of land as a pre-emption right, under the 
provisions of said act of 4th. September, 1841. 

Given under my hand, this day of , A. D. 18 — . 

In presence of . 

A. B. 
C. D. 



When the above declaration is filed, there will be 
issued from the Surveyor General's Office, a Certificate 
similar to the subjoined ; viz : 

No. SuiivEYOR General's Office, K. T. 

, 185—. 

I certify that has this day filed in m)'^ office a notice in accordance with 

the 12th. section of the Act establishing the Office of the Sui'veyor General of 
Kanzas and Nebraskn, and gi-anting pre-emption rights to actual settlers for 

the quarter of section number in township number in range 

number east of the 6th. Principal Meridian in Territory. 



Surveyor General of Kanzas and Ncbrask 



TO KANZAS EMIGRANTS. 11 

To quiet the fears of those who apprehend that all 
of the desirable portions of the Territory have been, 
or iu a short time will be, secured, it may be sufficient 
to say that tliere are millions of acres from which farm 
lots may now be selected, and that the quantity of land 
open to pre-emption is sufficient to accommodate seventy- 
five thousand families^ embracing half a million of in- 
dividuals. It contains an area of 114,798 square 
miles — it is three times as large as Ohio, and fourteen 
times the size of Massachusetts. It is capable of 
being divided into ten States, representing in num- 
ber of square miles, Maine, Vermont, New Hamp- 
shire, Massachusetts, Rhode Island, Connecticut, New 
Jersey, Delaware, Maryland and South Carolina. — 
Although, therefore, the farm lots in the immediate 
vicinity of, perhaps for miles aiound Lawrence, and 
some other of the earlier settlements, may be, and 
probably are, ere this, secured, there is a plenty of as 
good ones awaiting new comers. Let them found 
other New England or rather Liberty-loving settle- 
ments, of a similar character. To effect this requires 
neither magic nor supernatural power ; New England 
energy, industry, and perseverance, seconded by the 
efforts of true sons of Liberty, who went forth from 
various sections of the Union, brought the one, and 
can bring others into existence. Various sites for such 
settlements have been selected, and on application will 
be designated by the Company's Agents. 

Wood and Timber. — To the oft made inquiry — is 
there an abundance of timber in the Territory ? — the 
answer must be modified somewhat, according to the 
hailing place of the interrogator. If he be from Maine, 
we should reply, no ; if from Illinois, we should 
answer, there is a fair supply. In other words there is 
not an extreme scarcity, and there is far from an over- 
abundance of wood ; suflicient can be procured on 
reasonable terms for all ordinary purposes. The ad- 
vantage resulting from the limited supply is far greater 
than the disadvantage ; for the consequence is a free 



12 INFORMATION AND ADVICE 

dom from roots and stumps, the frequent occurrence of 
which, in many sections of our Country, proves a serious 
inconvenience to the Agriculturist, and requires for 
removal an expenditure of much time, money, and 
labor, in order to place the ground in an arable con- 
dition. The Law of Compensation is here found 
admirably exemplified ; as the under-supply of wood 
for fuel is more than made good by the vast deposits of 
bituminous coal known to exist in the Territory — the 
under-supply of timber for building purposes is reme- 
died by the abundance of lime and clay — the deficiency 
of fencing stuff by suitable material for walls ; and in 
a few years, should the" Osage Orange be cultivated, 
which will grow luxuriantly, hedges will supersede the 
necessity of any other means for forming inclosures. 
Though timber, to a person from a lumber region, 
would seem scarce, the scarcity is not one that will 
necessarily be constantly on the increase, as settlements 
multiply, and the lands are reclaimed from their present 
state ; inasmuch as the limited growth arises, not from 
uncongeniality of climate, unsuitableness of soil, or 
absence of seed, but from the frequent prevalence, year 
after year, of vast prairie fires that sweep every thing 
before them, and thus stint, or entirely prevent the 
growth of tree or shrub. Arrest the fires, and wood- 
lands will soon abound. Small, however, as the pro- 
portion of woodland is said to be, one of the Company's 
Agents, found no difficulty in contracting for 600 cords 
of standing wood at 25 cents per cord, and 600 logs of 
timber at 50 cents per log, the logs averaging half a 
thousand each. The price has somewhat advanced 
since, in consequence of the greatly increased demand; 
still purchases can be made at fair rates. The Herald 
of Freedom, of Jan. 26, 1856, says, — "If those who 
listened to the reports of returning Pioneers last Spring, 
that there was ' no timber in Kanzas,' could see the 
large logs brought to one of the Mills in town the other 
day, measuring five feet in diameter, and cutting three 
twelve feet logs from the same tree, the smallest meas- 



TO KANZAS EMIGRANTS. 13 

uring three feet in diameter, they would conclude there 
was but little confidence to be placed in similar reports. 
It is true there is not an over-supply of timber here ; 
but if what we have was equally divided among the 
settlers, there would be enough for all practical pur- 
poses for many years, or until another crop can be 
grown." 

The principal varieties of wood are bass or linwood, 
Cottonwood, hickory, oak, black walnut, ash, sycamore, 
hackberry, &c. 

Weather. — This of course cannot reasonably be 
expected to be uniformly the same, all years, for corres- 
ponding seasons. The same variations that are experi- 
enced elsewhere must be looked for and provided 
against in Kanzas ; though we believe, as a general rule, 
the variations there will be less frequent and extreme 
than they are liable to be in this section of the Country. 
There was a striking contrast, in regard to the degree 
of coldness, at Lawrence the last, and preceding Winter. 
At Lawrence during the Winter of 1854-'55, there was 
not necessarily any severe or long continued suffering 
from the inclemency of the weather. Gov. Reeder 
stated that a fire was not needed the last of December, 
1854; and a resident at the Company's Settlement 
writes that " on the 27th. of December, mechanics and 
others were comfortably at work in the open air with- 
out their coats, whilst the few idlers were basking in 
the sun like snakes in June." There was not, how- 
ever, an entire freedom from cold and stormy weather. 
Up to the close of the year, there occurred but one fall 
of snow, which was to the depth of two inches, and 
disappeared within three days ; in January 1855, only 
five inches of snow fell. 

A gentleman, who had resided at one of the Missions 
for fifteen years, said the greatest depth of snow at any 
one time during that long period was six inches. 

During the season above alluded to, there was no 
frost in the ground before the close of December; 
frost generally disappears by the beginning of March. 
2 



14 INFORMATION AND ADVICE 

According to Thermometrical Tables carefully kept 
at Lawrence by Dr. H. Clark,* the average temperature 
in November 1854, at sunrise, was 29 *^ F. ; at 1 o'clock, 
P. M., 49^ ^ ; and at J of an hour past sunset 44^ ^ . 
The average in December 1854, at the same periods 
were 25J ° , 49^, and 42 <=* ; and in January 1855, 
23 <^ , 39 <=> , and 32^ ^ . 

The Kaitzas Herald of Freedom under the date of 
Feb. 10th. 1855, says, " but once has the mercury gone 
down to zero ; and by those long on the ground we 
are assured that this is an uncommon occurrence; 
while the mean of all the observations will average 
only at the freezing point. Where we would ask, 
could a more delightful temperature be found ? None 
who have designed to make Kanzas their homes 
need be deterred from coming from any fear in respect 
to extreme cold. When the time shall arrive that we 
shall be surrounded with the comforts and conveniences 
of the older States, such a thing as discomfort on this 
account will be unknown." 

During the past winter, (1^55-'56) th©.re has been 
some very severe weather in the Territory. A portion 
of December and January proved colder than has any 
corresponding period for more than twenty years. 
Under date of December 29th. the Editor of the Herald 
of Freedom writes, the thermometer has ranged be- 
tween zero and 22° below that point for the last 
week, for \yhich he cannot account, excepting upon 
the supposition " that the weather table of the latitude 
of Gluebec has been substituted for that of Kanzas." 
The latter part of January, snow was six inches deep 
at Lawrence, and in the river bottoms, at some places, 
there were drifts, several feet in depth ; the ground 
was frozen a foot and a half deep, and the river was 

* In our former editions we expressed a hope tliat Dr. Clark would con- 
tinue his valuable and highly interesting meteorological obsei-vations. These 
however, were interrupted by his sudden decease, and it is to be regretted 
that no one has since taken sufficient interest in the important subject, to 
Bystematically pursue the investigations by him so praiseworthily commenced. 



TO KANZAS EMIGRANTS. 15 

covered with ice of the same thickness. By the latest 
accounts received, the rigor of winter had abated.* 

The winters are, notwithstanding, usually mild, and 
there is rarely suflicient snow for sleighing. A gentle- 
man of high respectability, told the writer, that soon 
after he took up his residence near Kanzas, he pur- 
chased an excellent, new sleigh, which he used a few- 
times that winter, and before another opportunity 
occurred (several years subsequently) the vehicle was 
so far decayed as to be utterly unserviceable. 

On the subject of luinter weather we have dwelled 
at some length, as numerous inquiries have been and 
are constantly being made in regard to it. 

We will briefly glance at the other seasons. Our 
acquaintance with Kanzas, writes Mr. Brown, ranges 
through seven and a half months, commencing with* 
the middle of November 1854. Those months, with 
the exception of April, have been ail we could have 
desired. April, owing to the high winds that prevailed, 
(which was also true in other sections of the Country,) 
proved very unpleasant. June was one of the most 

* Lest some individuals, forgetful of their own recent experience here, 
should imagine Kanzas a second Siberia, and the reports heretofore given of 
its climate, high colored and deceptive, it may be well to state that the past 
winter has been an extremely rigorous one throughout the Union, and in 
Italy and various other parts of Europe celebrated for a mild climate. In 
Philadelphia, the coldness of the month of January was eight degrees below 
the average for the last thirty years. At ileadville, Pa., Januaiy 25tli. the 
Thermometer fell to 30° below zero. So cold has it been in South -Carolina, 
Avhich has usually been supplied with ice from New England, that some per- 
sons have cut and stored away their own ice. In Mobile, on Jan 22d. the 
mercury stood at 25 '^ , and ice on the shady sides of the streets gave no indi- 
cation of thawing. In New Orleans, ice formed on the canals and in the 
gutters an inch thick, and in exposed situations much thicker. Water, in 
cisterns, was frozen in the faucets, so that it could not be drawn, and icicles 
were hanging around; fires and overcoats, and warm coverings at night, were 
in great demand. 

In Texas, on'thc upper Brazos, the Thennometer stood atone degree below 
zero ; cattle were dying and several travellers had peri>^hed from the severity 
of the cold. Similar instances might be adduced suflicient to fill many 
pages, were it neccssaiy. As with the land, so has it been with the water : 
Long Island Sound has been closed ; the Western rivers blocked with ice ; 
the Mississippi for all purposes of navigation has been shut its entire length ; 
even the inhabitants of '* the briny deep" have been suft'erers; the Nantucket 
Inquirer of January 23d. advises us, the excessive cold weather has been 
particuliM^y severe upon the eels on the coast, hundreds of bushels of which 
have been driven ashore and raked up on the beach. 



16 INFORMATION AND ADVICE 

lovely months ever known. In July, the range of the 
Thermometer was from 90 ^ to 100 ^ , between the 
hours of 10 A. M. and 3 P. M. ; although from the 
prevalence of gentle winds, the temperature was 
much cooler to the senses, than is above indicated. 
However hot may be the weather through the day, it 
is refreshingly cool and invigorating in the night ; so 
that indeed a blanket is, not unusually, very acceptable. 
May, June, and July are pronounced " model months." 
In August there were just rain and warmth enough to 
make a healthy and fertile Country ; during the hottest 
days, the Thermometer ranged between 90 ^ and 94 ^ . 
September was " a most lovely month " with the excep- 
tion of the first two or three days, and the last six, 
when the wind was rather higher than usual, and the 
atmosphere cold and damp. 

October, from the 1st. to the 20th., was generally 
pleasant and beautiful. From the 20th. to the 25th., 
high north and north-west winds prevailed, the Ther- 
mometer, through the day, standing below the freezing 
point ; from that time to the 10th. of November, 
excepting one day, it was so mild and pleasant that 
''workmen were constantly engaged out of doors, and 
the masons were busy erecting composite walls, which 
cannot be built during freezing weather." But little 
rain fell, and only a few flakes of snow were seen in 
the air, which melted before reaching the ground. 
*' Taking the month as a whole, we are not conscious 
of having experienced one so mild and pleasant." 

Rain. — The annual fall of rain is under thirty inches. 
The rainiest period usually is from May 10th. to June 
10th. ; during v/hich, and at all times, when severe rain 
storms occur, the roads are somewhat heavy, the creeks 
troublesome to ford, and travelling becomes tedious. 
There is very little rain in Midsummer or Autumn ; 
sometimes indeed,' scarcely as much as is desirable for 
farming purposes. During the rainy period, very few 
days pass by without the sun being seen, at least for a 
short time. 



TO KANZAS IMMIGRANTS. 



17 



Provisions. — There has been no deficiency of these ; 
tor ill Lawrence, as elsewhere, the demand produced a 
supply, by prompting those residing on the borders of 
the Territory to bring of their abundance to_the Settle- 
ment ; and the competition was sufficient to keep prices 
reasonable. This undoubtedly will hold true at other 
settlements. 

After the first year or two, the settlements will not 
only supply themselves, but have a surplus to dispose of. 

A market for all such surplus may, for years to come, 
be found near at hand, inasmuch as thousands are pass- 
ing through that region every year, along the California, 
Santa Fe, and Great Salt Lake City routes, all of whom 
require more or less supplies ; besides, the Missouri and 
Mississippi Rivers, and soon a line of railroads, will 
afford facilities for reaching other markets. 

Prices Current. — -As inquiries are constantly being 
made respecting the cost of various articles, the follow- 
ing Prices Current are presented, showing the state of 
the market at the Company's first settlements, at Law- 
rence and Topeka. The prices, with slight variations, 
will probably answer for the other settlements. 

PRICES CURRENT. 

LAWRENCE MARKET. 



Corrected weekly for the Herald of Freedom. 



Corn — 50 to 75 cents per bushel ; 

Corn meal 31 per 50 lbs. 
Beans — §3 50 per bushel. 
Flour — In Sacks, 36 25 per hundred ; 

Superfine, $6. 
Green Apples— $1 a $1 25 per bush. 
Dried Peaches — $2 50 per bushel. 
Butter — Fresh, 30 cents. 
Beef — 6 a 8 cents per lb. 
Pork— In bulk, $6 a $6 50 per bund. 
Hams — Smoked, 15 cts. Bacon, 12 cts. 

Prime Pickled Pork, 15 cents. 
Lard — 15 cents per lb. 
Tallow — 12 1-2 cents per lb. 
Cheese — 20 cents per lb. 

2* 



Lawrence, February 9, 1856. . 

Tea— Black, 70 a 80, Green, 80 a $1 

per lb. 
Tobacco — 25 a 70 cents per lb. 
Sal.eratus — 10 a 12 1-2 cents per lb 
Bar Soap — 10 a 12 cents per lb. 
Coarse Boots— 33 a 33 50 per pair. 
Blankets— $2 a 315. 
Buffalo Robes— 33 a 38. 
Calicoes — 10 a 15 cents per yard. 
De Laines — 25 a 35 cents per yard. 
Sheetings — Coarse, 8 a 12 cents ; 

Domestic, 9 a 10 cents ; Bleached, 

10 a 15 cents. 
Lamp Oil — 31 25 per gall. 
Burning Fluid— 31 25 per gall. 



18 



INFORMATION AND ADVICE 



Eggs— 25 cents pev cloz. 

Salt— Coarse and table, $1 50 per 

bushel. 
Sugar — New Orleans, 7 a 12 cents; 

Crushed, 16 cts. ; White, 12 cts. 
MoLAssKS — Sugar house, 75 cents ; 

Golden Syrup, 95 c. ; Syrup, 70 c. 
Rice — 12 1-2 cents per lb. 
Ckacivers — 15 cents per lb. 
CoDi isii — 10 cents per lb. 
Mackerel — 15 cents per lb. 
Potatoes, Irish— $1. 



Squash — 1 cent per lb. 

Coffee — 14 a 16 2-3 cents per lb. 

Iron — Bar, 8 cts.; Rounciaud Square, 

9 a 10 cts. ; Nail rod, 12 1-2 cts. 
Nails — $8 per hundred. 
Hides — Dried, 8 cts.; Green, 4 cts. 
Hay— $8 a SIO per ton. 
LuMBER^S25 a $85 per thousand ft 
Hard Wood — $3 per coi-d. 
Shot— 12 1-2 cts. per lb. ; Lead, 10 

cts. ; Powder, 35 a 50 cts. 
Window Sash — 8 a 10 cts. per light. 



TOPEKA MARKET. 



Corrected weekly hy Allen <^ Gordon, for the Kanzas Tribune. 



Beef per lb 5 a 6 

Bacon per lb , 10 

Ham 12 

Flour, s. f. per cwt $7 00 

" Fine ....^6 00 

Eggs per doz 30 

Corn Meal $1 25 

Beans per bushel $3 50 

Lard 12 

Cheese 18 a 25 

Cofiee 20 

Codfish 15 

Butter 30 

Pickled Porli per lb 10 

Glass per doz 50 a 1 10 

Sash per light 8 a 12 

Vinegar per gaU 35 

Candy 30 

Raisins 20 a 30 

Starch 15 

Sala^ratus per lb 10 

Burning Fluid $1 40 

Lamp Oil per gall $1 25 

Tallow per lb 12 

Salt per bag $6 00 

Potatoes ...$1 75 

Sugar, brown, per lb , . . 10 

" crushed 15 

" refined 16 

Syrup $1 25 

Molasses per gall 70 a 80 

Drillings ,12 a 15 

Bleached Muslin 10 a 15 

Domestics per yard 10 a 25 

Stove Pipe per lb 15 a 16 

Lumber per M $25 00 u 35 00 

Wood per cord $2 00 a 3 00 

Saws, cross-cut, American plate, 

per fopt $1 80 



ToPEKA, February 18, 185G. 

Saws, cross-cut, German $1 00 

Cook Stoves, Ohio pattern, 

No. 4, funiiture $27 50 

Cook Stoves, Ohio pattern. 

No. 3 $23 50 

Cook Stoves, Ohio pattern, 

No. 2 $18 20 

Cook Stovea^ Charter Oak, 

No. 4 $36 00 

Cook Stoves, Charter Oak, 

No. 3 $32 50 

Axes $1 50 

Star Candles 30 

Crackers 25 

Nails all kinds 8 a 10 

Nail Rod Iron 10 

Hoop Iron 15 

One-eight 10 

Three-eights round and square.. 11 

Seven-eights oval 10 

Iron flat bars, [heavv,] per lb 9 

LligH] 10 

Blankets per pair $2 50 a 15 00 

Cassinetts 50 a 1 00 

Flannels 25 a 50 

Calicoes 8 a 15 

All other articles of merchandise 
at corresponding rates. 

Ponies $25 a BO 00 

Horses $75 a 125 00 

Oxen per yoke $75 a 100 00 

Cows $25 rt 35 00 

Sheep $2 00 rt 3 00 

Bedsteads $4 00 a 12 00 

Chairs $6 00 a 18 00 

Bureaus $16 00 a 40 00 

Tables $5 00 a 10 00 



TO KANZAS IMMIGRANTS. 19 

Modes of Conveyance. — Vehicles are very frequently 
passing between Kanzas City, Lawrence, and Tojjeka, 
by which means those who intend locating in the vicinity 
of said towns will be conveyed there, for about four 
dollars the passage. Persons and Parties destined for 
other sections of the Territory may engage conveyance, 
at Kanzas City; or will probably adopt the course 
pursued by some who have preceded them; viz., those 
who intend to be Farmers will purchase their teams, 
and thus atford means for taking along the baggage of 
all their associates. There is a regular line of Stages 
between Kanzas City and Lawrence, also between 
Leavenworth and Lawrence,, and Kanzas City and 
Osawatomie. 

In the course of the season, it is expected that one 
or more steamboats and flat boats, constructed for the 
purjHjse, will ply on the Kanzas river, ascending 150 
miles or more, according to the stage of the water, and 
the encouragement extended to the enterprise. 

We consider that no more profitable business could 
be engaged in, than that of transporting freight to the 
various settlements on Kanzas river. It is true that 
the state of the river during a large part of the boating 
season of 1855 seems to militate against such an 
opinion. That season, however, was an extraordinary 
one ; the Kaw river being, throughout the period, 
lower than it had been known to be for twenty-five 
years ; and the cause which produced this, also serious- 
ly aftected the Missouri and other Western rivers ; viz. 
the small quantity of ice and snow in the Mountains 
the preceding Winter. The great abundance of both 
the past Winter, gives promise of a good state of navi- 
gation the coming season. Competent judges inform 
the writer that the Kaw River, will, on an average, be 
navigable, at least as far as Lawrence, three years out 
of four, through the greater part of the Missouri river 
season ; when not navigable, the Boat could be remu- 
neratively employed on the Missouri, conveying flour 
up, or grain down. To ensure a profitable business, 



20 INFORMATION AND ADVICE 

attention to several points is absolutely requisite ; the 
Boat must be of very light draught ; the Captain must 
be an experienced, sober, active and energetic man ; 
and the Pilot must possess, and bring into practice strict 
temperance principles. 

Accommodations in the Territory. — It was origi- 
nally intended to establish Receiving Houses at the 
principal Places, for the temporary accommodation of 
new comers. This was done at Lawrence. But the 
necessity for them is in a great measure superseded by 
the opening of Boarding Houses at the Settlements. 
Were it however otherwise, not being constructed on a 
locomotive principle, settlers ought not, and probably 
would not he so unreasonable as to expect to meet with 
them everywhere throughout that vast region ; neither 
are they requisite in a large majority of cases, (however 
convenient,) inasmuch as all who go out in the Spring 
and Summer, if industrious, will have time to provide 
themselves with shelter, prior to the ensuing winter. 
The quickest, cheapest, and most comfortable way of 
securing shelter, at the onset, is to take along tents. 
These should be procured on the way out, at St. Louis. 
One of sufficient size to lodge four or live individuals 
may be had for from $8 to $10.* 

At Lawrence, the Company has erected a commo- 
dious stone Hotel, 50 by 70 feet, three stories high, 
and a basement ; this will accommodate a very large 
number of individuals and families. It is said to be 
the finest structure of the kind. West of St. Louis. 

Families. — Whether or not to take one's family 
along, or go ahead and prepare the way for it, depends 
on many circumstances, varying greatly in different 
cases, a knowledge of which is essential, satisfactorily 
to decide the question. Where the wife is feeble, has 
an infant, or several young children, or from any cause 
cannot lend a helping hand, she had better remain be- 
hind^ until the new ho7ne is provided for her ; or, if 
taken along, she had better be boarded at the nearest 

* See further on p. 24. 



TO KANZAS IMMIGRANTS. 



21 



convenient place to the spot selected for a location. If, 
on the other hand, the woman is the man, or is in truth 
a helpmate, and can cheerfully submit to roughing- it 
for a while, if the children be of an age and character 
suited to prove serviceable, let them he taken along. 
If families remain back, it will be unnecessary to return 
for them, as there will always be some one going out 
under whose charge they can be placed! 

DoARD. — This can be obtained at Boarding Houses 
in Kanzas City, Mo., and at Lawrence, Topeka, Osa- 
watomie, Manhattan, Leavenworth, and Council City, 
K. T., and perhaps at some of the Missions, for from 
$3,00 to $4,00 per week. At hotels it will be much 
higher : probably about $7,00 per week. 

Employment. — Work is 7iot guaranteed by the Coni- 
pany to any one ; but wherever settlements already are, 
or hereafter maybe started, ^ooc/ mechanics will find 
employment at remiinei^ative prices] particularly car- 
penters, masons, blacksmiths, harness-makers, brick- 
makers, &c. Gov. Reeder, wrote in December, 1S54 — 

" This is a most lovely and promising country. There is no finer 
under the sun, and next summer it will be a rich harvest for all 
kind of building mechanics and laborers. Last season stone masons 
and carpenters got $2,25 and S2,50 a day, laborers $1,25 and $1,50. 
A legion of them will be needed early in the spring and all summer. 
If you have any to spare send them along. "We shall pay out in 
the Territory near a million of dollars in building, and a man can be 
earning the highest wages and getting a good farm at SI. 25 per 
acre at the same time. The Government alone will spend $100,000 
or $150,000 in stone buildings, at Fort Kiley. The stone mason, 
carpenter, brickmaker, bricklayer, plasterer, laborer, limeburner, 
&c., can lay the foundation of a fortune here the first year. Send 
them on, I know they will not repent it. We have as yet had 
nothing I would call winter, and I doubt if it will be any colder. 
Spring opens about the 1st of March, and mechanics, &c., should be 
here at that time. There are some twenty towns laid out, the 
greater part of which must be built up, to say nothing of farm 
houses, &c." 

As already suggested, the Company advises no o?ie, 
entirely destitute of mca7is, to go out, at this early 
period; individuals who can command the requisite 
funds (which indeed are but small,) to sustain them the 



22 INFORMATION AND ADVICE 

first year, in other words until a crop is raised, or em- 
ployment is sure, can go in perfect safety, and unques- 
tionably should better their condition by going ; others 
mat/ find sufficient work to supply means, but it is pre- 
mature for a very large number of such to go, although 
thus far the supply of laborers has not kept pace with 
the demand ; men of determined energy, great self-reli- 
ance, industrious and temperate habits, who are not 
easily disheartened, and whose indomitable perseverance 
will enable them to surmount such obstacles as the set- 
tlers of new regions will be obliged to encounter, though 
less perhaps in Kanzas than in most unreclaimed regions, 
such need not hesitate to immigrate, though dependent 
solely on their hands and daily exertions for a liveli- 
hood ; all others, who are thus destitute, should " bide 
their time." 

Climate* and Diseases. — ''The only objection we 
have found to the climate of Kanzas, thus far," (says 
the Herald of Freedom,) "is the heavy winds, which 
usually blow from one to three days at a time over the 
prairies, making it rather disagreeable to be exposed out 
of doors. We think the wind and storms are not more 
violent than in Western Pennsylvania and Eastern 
Ohio." 

Professional men pronounce the climate a remark- 
ably healthy one, admirably adapted to those having a 
tendency to diseases of the lungs. It is in a great 
measure free from that pest of many Western places, 
intermittents, or fever and ague ; (chills and fever, or 
shakes as popularly termed ;) cases can and do occur there, 
mainly however, from imprudence ; and probably will be 
met with to some extent, on the first breaking up of the 
lands ; but such is the character of the country, and 
consequent deficiency of existing material, it is not 
probable that it will become one of the permanent dis- 
eases of the region. 



* Some remarks bearing on this, will be found under the head of Weather 
We now speak of it in relation to its healthfulness. 



TO KANZAS IxMMIGRANTS. 23 

During the past Summer (1855) this disease prevailed 
at most of the settlements, far more generally than had 
been anticipated. But, from a personal examination of 
the locations, and an inquiry into the habits and modes 
of living of the sufierers, the writer is convinced that 
ix very large proportion of the cases, with ordinary care, 
might have been avoided, and after their occurrence, 
with prudence and judicious remedial management, 
might have been promptly cured. It should not be for- 
gotten that during the period referred to, exciting and 
predisposing causes were more active and virulent than 
usual, as is evident from the fact that various Indian 
tribes, in Kanzas Territory and elsewhere, reported a 
greater prevalence of the disease than had occurred for 
many years previously ; and from the additional facts 
that it raged with unwonted violence in those sections 
of the West usually afflicted with it, and that it also 
appeared in many quarters (as in the interior of Ohio,) 
where it never before manifested itself. It is said that 
this disease when it attacks Indians, yields more readily 
to medicines, than when Whites are the suiferers. 

Prior to the appearance of the cholera, a period of six 
years elapsed without a single death occurring, to the 
knowledge of Dr. Lykins,* between Kanzas City, Mo., 
and the region of the Big Blue, in the vicinity of Fort 
Riley ; a distance of 125 miles West. 

From October to August, previous to the irruption 
of that disease, there was an almost complete immuni- 
ty from sickness. The most sickly period is in April 
and May, when bowel complaints, having a typhoid 
tendency, prevail. Most sickness in the Fall occurs from 
the middle of August to the middle of September, and 
then bilious remittents and intermittents occur ; some 
seasons, typhoid fever makes its appearance, w4iich it 

* To this gentleman we are under great obligations for his unceasing kind- 
ness, and his assiduous professional attendance, during a period of six weeks, 
whilst we were confined with a severe attack of typhoid fever. We with 
much pleasure avail of this opportunity to recommend him to all who may 
need tlxe services of a kind and competent Physician. 



34 INFORMATION AND ADVICE 

did last Fall for the second time only, in 12 or 15 years. 
A large portion of the cholera cases of which we hear so 
much, particularly on the Western waters, and at the 
river towns, result from gross imprudence ; as is evident 
from the fact that from two thirds to three fourths of 
them break out early in the week, i. e. after the 
excesses indulged in, Saturday nights and on Sundays. 
In Winter, a few coughs and colds, and some cases of 
pneumonia or lung fever are met with ; — but little else. 

Cost of Building. — This of course must vary accord- 
ing to the material used, the size and style of the house, 
&c., &c. The main aim at first, when so many im- 
portant matters will require attention, should be to put 
up a cheap, temporary shelter. A tent costing from 
^8,00 to $15,00 will accommodate five or six persons, 
tolerably Avell. A stone house, somewhat similar to the 
concrete form, may be built for from 12 1-2 to 14 cents 
the cubic foot. A house thus constructed, a story and 
a half high, will cost, ready for occupancy, from $300 to 
$500. A permanent log house of the same dimensions, 
from $100 to $250 ; one suitable for transient occu- 
pancy, from $50 to $100; the former would require 
the labor of four hands for two weeks, the last the same 
number for one week. 

In all cases, avoid lying immediately on the damp 
ground or green grass. Where material can be had, 
and it is difficult to conceive where it cannot, a flooring 
should be laid at once, no matter how rough and rude 
it be. At all events, elevate the resting place above 
both. By neglect of this simple precaution, much un- 
necessary sickness and suffering have been endured. 
The writer visited several tenements whilst in the Ter- 
ritory, where the grass under the bedding was rank with 
mould, and yet the inmates could not conceive why 
they were racked with pains more than their neighbors. 
Avoid building in the low bottoms, on the banks of the 
streams, or among the timber on the borders ; the more 
elevated the site, the less liability to sickness. 



TO KANZAS IMMIGRANTS. 25 

The Kanzas Tribune recommends a Puncheon floor- 
ing, which the editor thus describes: 

" It is made by splitting a log in flat pieces, hewing one side to a 

{)lain surfiice, and notching the other down to fit sleepers. Small 
ogs are sometimes nearly split in two, ma"king large slahs, while 
larger ones are split in three or four pieces. After splitting the pieces, 
each end is laid on a piece of timber, in which is placed two pins to 
hold the puncheon on its edge, and thus it is hewed in the same man- 
ner as any other piece of timber, and turning it down, the edges are 
squared. After laying down a floor of this kind, the surface is fre- 
quently made even with an adze. It is a very substantial floor, and 
can be made quite handsome. These were the kind of floors almost 
universally used in the log cabins of the West. There is no use in 
being without a floor where there is timber enough to make one." 

Time of commencing farm work, its cost, the kind 
AND VALUE OF CROPS, &c. — Ou thcsc poiuts, WG avail of 
information furnished for publication by an individual 
bitterly and uncompromisingly opposed to the present 
New England movement, and who has exerted himself 
to throw all the im{)ediments and discouragements pos- 
sible in the way of those who contemplate emigrating 
from the Free States ; when such a person is compelled 
to make so flattering statements as the subjoined, there 
is no necessity for our friends ofl"ering any extra induce- 
ments to freemen to become citizens of Kanzas. It 
may be well to premise that the cost of hiring Prairie 
land broken up, will be about three dollars per acre ; 
and we understand that individuals, suitably prepared, 
and acquainted with the business, purpose pursuing it 
as a vocation ; so that what Gen. Stringfellow deems 
an insuperable difliculty in the way of New England 
and Western farmers, can easily be obviated ; and where 
no one can be hired, resort will be had to the very com- 
mon practice, of which he seems ignorant, of doubling, 
or trebling teams, and thus mutually aiding one another. 
He says : — ^ 

" The greatest difficulty is in the command of the requisite 
labor — the hands and team necessary to break and enclose the 
land. To one who has this, it is far easier and cheaper to make 
a farm of one hundred acres or more, in the prairie than in the 
timber. Indeed, in Missouri it is deemed better and cheaper in 
3 



26 INFORMATION AND ADVICE 

the end to make a farm of three hundred acres in the prairie 
and to haul the rails ten miles, than to clear timbered land. 

The plough used will turn over from twenty to twenty-six 
inches, and one team will break from two to two and a half acres 
per day. The cattle require no other feed, but will keep fat on 
the gi'ass while at work. The proper season for breaking prairie 
is from the first of May to the middle of July ; up to which 
time corn can be planted. The com is dropped in the furrow, 
by a boy who can sit on the plough, and is covered by the plough. 
It will usually mature and make good corn if planted as early 
as the first of June. That planted later will make good stock 
feed. 

Prairie may be broken up as late as the middle of August, 
and will, if sown, yield a wheat crop equal to any that can be 
afterwards grown on the ground. 

To one who has stock to feed, the crop of corn on the sod is 
always worth the cost of breaking ; and will, in a good season, 
pay for breaking and enclosing. 

In the second year, the farm is in perfect condition ! There 
are no stumps, but the sod is rotted, and your field clear of 
weeds and grass, is light and mellow as an ash-band. In the 
prairie, too, a hand can cultivate one-third more than in the 
timber. 

I ought here to say that both in Missouri and Kanzas the 
wi-nters are always dry, and with but little snow, and hence 
hands are able to work during the entire winter." 

As regards yield of crops, the same writer makes the 
following statement, to show the great profit of slave 
labor ; and we will not insult the good sense of our 
friends, by doubting for a moment that a /re^man can 
accomplisli as much as a 6on«/man. He says : — 

" Lying in the same latitude, immediately west, and along 
side of Missouri, the soil and climate of Kanzas cannot differ 
materially from those of Missouri. I am inclined to believe that 
Kanzas will prove even healthier than Missouri, there being less 
low marshy land in Kanzas. 

" Before leaving home, I procured from intelligent farm- 

ers in Platte, a country bordering on Kanzas, a statement show- 
ing the amount of land which one hand can cultivate, with the 
yield per acre, and the market price of the products at home. I 
have no hesitation in attesting its correctness. 



$425 


00 


585 


00 


600 00 


225 


00 


100 


00 



TO KANZAS IMMIGRANTS. 27 

Amount of land to hand and yield per acre. 
Hemp — 7 to S acres, 800 to 1200 pounds. 
Corn — 10 to 15 acres, 10 to 20 barrels. 

Wheat — 10 to 15 acres, 20 to 45 bushels. 
Oats — 10 to 15 acres, 30 to 50 

VALUE OF PRODUCTS AT HOME. 

Hemp— 2^ tons at $8 per ton, $200 00 

Corn — 100 barrels at $1 per barrel, 100 00 

Wheat — 5 acres — 100 bushels at 80 cents per bushel, 80 00 

Oats — 5 acres — 150 bushels at CO cts per bushel. 45 00 

Total least yield at lowest prices, 

Hemp — 4 J tons at $ 1 30 per ton. 

Corn — 300 barrels at $2 per barrel. 

Wheat — 5 acres — 225 bushels at $1 per bushel, 

Oats — 5 acres — 250 bushels at 40 cents per bushel, 

G-reatest yield at highest prices, $1,510 00 

This will, doubtless, seem an extravagant estimate ,' yet the 
quotations of the markets will show that the maximum prices 
are less than the present market prices. Hemp has sold during 
the past season for $150 per ton. Wheat is worth $1,25 per 
bushel, and corn $3 per barrel. The yield, too, is often greater 
than the highest. But it is not less true that the greatest 
yield and highest price are not often together. My object is 
rather to show the least yield and the lowest price. 

To a distance of 150 miles west, the soil is but little, if any 
inferior to that of Missouri. Its great staples must be hemf^ 
and tobacco — ^ '^ =-'^ I need hardly say that the grains 
and grasses will all succeed, where hemp and tobacco can be 
grown. 

I have said that Kanzas was not suited to the poor man ; I 
only intended to refer to those who design to till the ground. 
[ ! ! ! ] But to the poor mechanic it offers great inducements. 
To all carpenters especially, and to stone and brick masons it 
will give constant employment at high wages. The rudest 
beginner receives $1,50 per day — good workmen, as journeymen, 
receive in regular employment from two to three dollars per day. 
Their expenses are light, the cost of living being low." 

It has been so often alleged against the Company 
and its Agents, that they have portrayed in glowing and 



28 INFORMATION AND ADVICE 

deceptive colors, the beauty and fertility of Kanzas 
Territory, and thereby allured people to migrate thither, 
who, had the truth been fitly spoken, would never have 
wandered from their homes, — and as the allegation is 
made, not only by those openly opposed to our move- 
ments, but by many in our very midst, who covertly 
side with the enemy, or are led astray by the disheart- 
ening statements of returned discontented ones, we sub- 
join the opinions of two other writers, whose character 
and standing are vouched for by pro-slavery presses. 

The first extracts subjoined, are from a letter written 
by a gentleman at Platte City, Mo., Nov. 30, 1855, and 
addressed to a friend in Georgia. That there may be 
no mistake as regards his hostility to us, we copy a 
portion of his second paragraph. 

" I live in sight of Kanzas. My first two children 
were born there. You are aware that on the passage 
of the Kanzas-Nebraska Bill, New England rose in her 
might, formed aid societies, and vomited forth on us all 
the dirt and filth of her degraded fanaticism." 
After much in the same style, he declares. 
" As far as health, climate and profit of negro labor is 
concerned, this is better than any country in the Union. 
It is true, we have hot and cold, wet and dry weather, 
but I never saw the country where a man can be more 
independent, and make his bread and meat with less 
'capital than here. * * Ten or twelve furrowt 
run in corn will make ten barrels to the acre. One 
thousand pounds of hemp is a common crop to the acre. 
Wheat and oats do well ; oceans of grass and swarms of 
cattle ; and withal good markets for everything. 

" This is the stake that poor, barren New England 
contends for and hates to surrender ; and it remains for 
the South to say. Your blood and treasure paid for 
half of the seven territories, which at present belong to 
the United States. Has not the South manliness to 
take possession of one ? And if you don't get Kanzas, 
which one can you get ? None, none. 



TO KANZAS IMMIGRANTS. 29 

"We want your moving population to come here. We 
want your poor and rich, who are inclined to move at 
all, to come to Kanzas, and while they thns secure this 
glorious Territory to the South, and the Union to us all, 
take my word as a man of honor, they will reap a rich 
harvest in their own personal advancement.'' 

Our other witness is the Hon. Sterling G. Cato, one 
of the Territorial Judges, who holds his appointment 
under the administration of President Pierce. In a let- 
ter of recent date, addressed to his brother, residing at 
Eufaula, Alabama, he says, 

" The people here are quiet and orderly, sharp and 
intelligent ; a little rough in manners, but warm-heart- 
ed and cordial. This is as fine a country as any on the 
face of the earth, and the profits of its productions 
woiUd far exceed those of the cotton fields of the South. 
All kinds of grain, grass, clover and hemp, yield a rich 
product. I have no doubt but that slave labor would 
yield in hemp, corn and grain, at least from thirty to 
forty dollars per acre annually. I have seen no poor 
land, it all seems to me richer than the best Chattahoo- 
chee bottom, and most of it just such ^and as in the 
adjoining Missouri, counties, is now seeing at from $20 
to $50 dollars per acre. Corn is now selling at twenty 
cents per bushel, and the product estimated at one hun- 
dred bushels an acre ; and hemp crop (six tons per 
hand,) at $140 per ton, awd you see at once how labor 
is more productive her^ than at the South. It is im- 
possible to give an «ndequate idea of the beauty and fer- 
tility of the soil a^jd country ; generally rolling, without 
a great deal of timber, but, as I understand, abounding 
in coal for ^res, and stone for building and fencing; 
good we/is of water can be obtained anywhere, besides 
frequent streams running through the prairies." 

To the preceding we would add, three of the best 

branches of business to engage in, are wool growing, 

stock raising, and dairy farming, for which purposes 

there probably is not to be found a superior region j 

and those who early embark in either, will in a few 
3# 



30 INFORMATION AND ADVICE 

years realize large fortunes, as the fruits of their in- 
dustry. 

Land Warrants. — The inquiry is often made of us, 
whether Land Warrants are or will be available in Kan- 
zas ? We answer, if the holders of them are not, or do 
not intend to become actual settlers, they cannot at 
present locate them either in Kanzas, or Nebraska ; for 
lands must first be surveyed, offered at public sale, and 
rendered subject to private entry, before they. can thus 
be taken up. These Warrants will,, however, be receiv- 
ed in payment for preemption claims. To holders, 
therefore, who are actual settlers under the preemption 
law, they will prove as good as money, when pay day 
comes, for securing their 160 acres of land.* 

The Indian tru,st lands will not be subject to Land 
Warrant locations, if Government act in good faith ; as 
by treaty they are to be sold for the benefit of the 
Indians. 

Fencing, &c. — To fence with rails will cost about 
sixty cents per rod ; stone walls can be built for about 
one dollar per rod ; and what is known in the Territory 
as picket fence, for forty cents per rod. 

Indians. — From the Indians, the original and rightful 
owners of the soil, the settler has nothing to fear, so 
long as in his intercourse with them, he squares his 
conduct by the Golden Rule. The poor native has in 
times past suffered more, and now has far more to appre- 
hend, from the white man, tham the white man from 
him. Most of those with whom ihe settlers will come 
in contact, are in what we call, a semi-civilized state ; 
they are not roving, '' wild Indians," here to-day and 
there to-morrow, but have permanent locations, cultivate 
the soil, raise some cattle, sow' and plant ; and from 
them, on fair terms, the immigrants may obtain vegeta- 
bles, fencing stuff, &c. &c. 

Many of these, particularly among the Shawnees, 
the Wyandots, and the Delawares, are highly intelligent, 
and have a good common school education ; among 

♦These remarks will not apply to Warrants issued under the Act of 1850. 



TO KANZAS IMMIGRANTS. 31 

them will be found active and shrewd business men ; 
some speak French and English almost as fluently as 
their native tongue ; and among the females some may- 
be met with who have received instruction in Music 
and Drawing. Twice in the course of liis tour, the 
writer had the pleasure of an interview with an individ- 
ual, a Pottawattomie by birth, and a Ottawa by adop- 
tion, who received a liberal education in one of the 
Collegiate Institutions of Western New York ; he is a 
worthy member of church, and a philanthropist, whose 
face is never averted from the needy, nor door closed 
against the weary and way worn traveller. 

Among most of the tribes, Protestant and Catholic 
Missions have been established for many years, and 
accomplished much good. Until recently, the Friends 
and the Baptists have supported schools in the Shawnee 
Reserve. It is a subject of great regret that at a time 
when above all others it is of the utmost importance that 
the principles of '' pure and undefiled religion " should 
be inculcated, the Baptist Board, and we think the 
Friends, have abandoned their vantage ground, and left 
their former pupils and their descendants to go astray, 
or be subjected to the tender mercies of those who have 
not their welfare at heart. We must think those 
Denominations have acted under wrong impressions, 
and that they will ere long renew their works of benev- 
olence and Christianity. 

Towards this ill-fated race, were the hand of friend- 
ship more frequently extended, than the weapon of de- 
struction levelled, were the policy of Government one of 
peace rather than of war, of civilization than of brutali- 
zation, or what it threatens to be, of extermination, it 
would be far more to the credit of the white man, and 
we should eventually be convinced of the erroneousness 
of the long prevalent opinion, that the red man is irre- 
claimable. 

This Company has always enjoined upon its Agents 
and upon settlers, to avoid committing trespasses upon 
any of the Indian tribes. Pursuing this course, it has 



32 INFORMATION AND ADVICE 

declined making locations at several desirable sites 
where towns have since been established, by those less 
scrnpulons, against whose incursions, the Indian Agents, 
the ostensible and legal guardians and protectors of 
the tribes, have raised no successful opposition. 

Settlements and Population. — The first settlement 
under the auspices of the Company was commenced in 
August, 1854. A few months subsequently, Gen. B. 
F. Stringfellow, in a long Letter addressed to certain 
members of Congress, with the view of '-enlightening " 
the people of the South, " touching the settlement of 
Kanzas Territory, and its adaptedness to slave labor," 
uttered the following sentiments and predictions: 

"I was somewhat alarmed when I saw our Southern 
friends seemingly ready to surrender it, deterred by the 
declaration of those on whom they were accustomed to 
rely, that ' it was not adapted to slave labor,' while, at 
the same time. Abolitionists were organizing their com- 
panies, with millions of capital to colonise that Terri- 
tory. Yet I never despaired ! I still declared that, 
though sent out they could not remain, they could not 
live in the prairies." ********* =M' 
District one " included the toAvn of Lawrence, to which 
those sent by the Abolition Societies were forwarded. 
Those Societies show, by their reports, that they have 
transported to Kanzas 3,000 during the past summer; 
and I incline to the belief that the number is not over 
stated. Of that number, you will see, there were left 
on the day of the election, but 248 ! Of these, I am 
credibly informed, 150 left on the day following the 
election, having complied with their contract in voting. 
Others have since left, and I can safely say, that of the 
Avhole batch, there will not by March, [1855] be fifty 
left in the Territory ! They were not such men as 

could settle a prairie country." 

******** 

" It is not adapted to the making of towns; it is not 
suited for little farms ; it cannot be settled by those 
who have not the command of labor. 



TO KANZAS IMMIGRANTS. 



33 



" To the farmer who has no * help,' — but is depen- 
dent on his own unaided labor, Kanzas is, of all, the 

least desirable country; it cannot be settled by such." 
# # # # * # * #' 

'*In no instance has prairie land been first settled by 
poor men. After a country is settled, and every facility 
is afforded, it is just possible for one here and there to 
make a farm on the prairie. In Missouri such in- 
stances even yet, are rare." 

If the above opinions, so magesterially set forth, be 
taken as correct, then the results to which we shall 
now refer are more astonishing, and magnificent, than 
any of the fairy work described in the thousand- and 
one stories of the Sultaness of the Indies, and in com- 
parison therewith, the fabled wonder of the Dragon's 
teeth shrinks into utter insignificance. 

The ninety -eight men, which are said to have re- 
mained in the Territory on the 30th. of November, 
1854, the poor remnant of three thousand, and these 
shortly to be blotted out, as though they never were, 
not beings ^^ such men as could settle a prairie coiin- 
^;-y," have since increased to hundreds, and now to 
thousands ; the Population of the Territory, at the 
lowest estimate, has reached 25,000, and according to 
the mtelligent correspondent of the Missouri Democrat, 
who writes under date of Jan. last, it has reached 
60,000 ; three-fifths of whom entertain Free State sen- 
timents. 

Although the Territory '' is not adapted to- the mak* 
ing of towns, ''^ the following, which contain from three 
hundred to eighteen hundred inhabitants, have already 
sprung into existence ; viz. Lawrence, Topeka, Man- 
hattan, Osawatomie, Hampden, Council City, and 
Leavenworth ; to which may be added the smaller set- 
tlements of Waubonse, Blanton, Brownville, Big Springs, 
Easton, Ohio City, Ocena, and the German Settlement 
on Upper Mill Creek. 

Although " ?io^ suited for little farms, ''^ the whole 
country, round about every one of the above named 



34 INFORMATION AND ADVICE 

towns, is so completely occupied with them, that it is 
extremely difficult to find an unimproved track whereon 
to locate. 

Further, though ^^ it cannot he settled by those who 
have not the command of labor, ^^ and " /o the farmer 
who has no help, Kanzas is, of all, the least desirable 
country,^' the name of just that description of settlers is 
legion, and " the cry is still they come." From Law- 
rence to Topeka, the traveller is never out of sight of 
the dwelling, or cornfield of such a settler ; and let him 
direct his steps whithersoever he may, towards the 
Wakarusa, up the Kanzas, along the Big Blue, on the 
banks of their numerous tributaries, down upon the 
Neosho, in the Osage country, or elsewhere, the well 
tilled land, the cultivated fields, the luxuriant crops of 
grain, all betoken that the indomitable will, the untiring 
energy, the persevering industry, the unceasing activity 
of freemen have placed their inefifaceable stamp upon 
the soil ; and the humble dwellings as unmistakeably 
show that those freemen belong to the class who arc 
^^ dependent on their own unaided labor,^^ for prosperity 
and success. It is the bone, and sinew, and muscle of 
the ^^poor me?t," the sturdy yeomanry of the land, 
which have wrought such astonishing changes, in such 
an almost incredibly brief space of time ; of ^'poor men,'^ 
by whom it is asserted, *'m no instance has prairie 
land been first settled,''^ and of whom it is declared to be 
^^ jnst possible for one here and there to make a farm 
on a prairie, after a country is settled and every facil- 
ity afforded.^'' ! II Men, poor, perhaps in purse, but rich 
in the mental, moral, and physical resources which in 
reality constitute men, and without which, even with 
the wealth of Croesus, they would be poor indeed. 

Of some of the principal settlements we have named, 
there are subjoined brief and hasty sketches ; our limits 
not v/arranting us in going much into detail, nor in 
specially noticing all of them, however gratifying it 
might be to us. 



*rO KANZAS IMMIGRANTS. 



ts 



Lawrence. This was the first settlement made un- 
der the auspices'of the Company. The Pioneer Party, 
which started from Boston July 17th. 1854, ^r5^ pitched 
their tents " within a stone's throw from the bank of 
the river." The Second Party, which arrived early 
in September following, judiciously encamped on the 
high ground, in the rear of the now flourishing town, 
near the great California trail. These Parties united 
their forces, and went vigorously'to work on the present 
town site. This spot was thus described by George S. 
Parks, Esq., as it appeared to him in June, 1854. 

" On both sides of the river, above the Wakarusa, there are excel- 
lent bottom lands ; and, a short way beyond these, another fine site 
for a town presents itself on the north side — while still farther up on 
the south bank, the high prairie comes right down to the water's 
edge, presenting another appropriate place, where the busy hum of 
commerce may by and by speak the presence of a city. Here we saw 
numerous cabins of settlers ; and away, as far as the eye could reach, 
in a southwesterly direction, the prairies werc< high and rolling like 
the waves of Old Ocean. Southward, beautiful grov(?B dot the prai- 
rie, and the dark line of timber that stretches along the Wakarusa 
valley — with the great Prairie-mound, so to speak, fixed there as the 
land mark of perpetual beauty — the meandering river, with its dark 
skirting forests of timber on the north — all are scenes in Nature's 
magnificent Panorama, here brought within range of vision. Pro- 
ceeding north, high rich bottoms extend for many miles, and we saw 
vast thickets of grape-vines, pea-vines, raspberries, and pawpaws. 
The timber was principally oak, walnut, ash, hickory, mulberry, 
hackberry, linden, cotton-wood and coffee-bean." 

Surely all who have heard the "busy hum," and 
witnessed the activity and industry which have since 
characterized that place, so clearly indicating that 
'' Young Anierica " is there, will feel constrained to 
acknowledge, in regard to the above writer, that the 
spirit of prophecy was in him. 

Lawrence received its present appellation in Septem- 
ber, 1854. The name was selected, as we were in- 
formed at the time, " first, in honor of the Treasurer of 
the Emigrant Aid Company, Amos A. Lawrence, Esq., 
both as an individual and officer of the Company ; second, 
because the name sounded well, and had no bad odor 
attached to it, in any part of the Union, or world ; and 
lastly, because the citizens preferred it to any other." 



36 INFORMATION AND ADVIOE 

The town was surveyed by Mr. A. D. Searl. The 
streets, thirty-two in number, running horth and south, 
are named after the several States constituting the 
Union. The rnain street is called Massachusetts, she 
having been the prime mover in the enterprise ; to the 
east of this are twelve streets which are designated by 
the names of the remainder of the '' old thirteen ; " to 
the west are niiieteen more, which bear the names of 
the other States, in the order of their admission, begin- 
ning with Vermont and ending with California. All of 
these are eighty feet wide, with the exception of Mas- 
sachusetts Street, which is one hundred feet. At right 
angles to these, run other streets, which are named after 
individuals, distinguished for their Patriotism, Philan- 
thropy, and Love of Liberty, Within the town limits 
are numerous parks, which* bear, among others, the 
honored names of Washington, Franklin, LaFayette, 
Hamilton, Roger Williams, Fulton, and Clinton. The 
first elevation in the rear of the town, was«called Oread 
Mount in compliment to Eli Thayer, Esq. This was 
originally set apart for Schools and Churches ; the still 
more elevated ground further back, known as Capitol 
Hill, was designed for County and other Public Build- 
ings. 

" It embraces an extensive, slightly rolling prairie for 
the business streets, and a large park, and also high 
table lands and beautiful inclined planes, for public 
buildings and residences. Its geographical position is 
not inferior to its topographical ; and that it will equal 
any other in character and enterprise, none will doubt 
who know the inhabitants." 

The town contains many substantial stone buildings, 
a fine stone Hotel, already alluded to, and known as 
the Free State Hotel, three Saw Mills, a good Grist 
Mill, several large wholesale and retail stores, at one 
of which $20,000 worth of goods were disposed of the 
past year, two printing offices and many other estab- 
lishments. Ground has already been broken for a 
Unitarian, and soon 'will be for a Congregational 



FOR KANZAS IMMIGRANTS. 37 

house of Worship. Members of other Denominations 
are also actively engaged in raising funds for Church 
edifices. The inhabitants number about fifteen hun- 
dred ; and nowhere throughout tlie Union can there be 
found a town, which, proportioned to its size, contains 
so large a number of liberally educated individuals. 

TopEKA. This is the second place, in time, estab- 
lished as a Free State settlement. The site was selected 
by the Agents of this Company, and on their recom- 
mendation, certain individuals of the Fifth Party here 
drove down their stakes on the 29th. day of November, 
1854 ; they were a few days after joined by " the ad- 
vance column " of the Sixth Party, and on the 5th. of 
December, an organization was completed, and the town 
founded ; subsequently further accessions were made 
10 their number, and they rapidly advanced in prosper- 
ity ; so that it has at length become the third town in 
the Territory, in point of size and importance. It lies 
on the south bank of the Kanzas River, about 75 miles 
from the mouth, 25 miles west of Lawrence, and 75 
miles east of Fort Riley. 

The town is one and a half miles square ; the streets 
are one hundred feet wide, running from Kanzas River 
to Shungamung, or Red Horse Creek ; the house lots 
are 75 feet front, and 150 feet deep. 

It contains several stone structures, a number of stores, 
two Printing offices, from each of which a weekly 
Newspaper is regularly issued ; a Saw Mill, Grist Mill, 
and other conveniences; ground has been broken for a 
Methodist Church, 40 by 60 feet in dimensions; the foun- 
dation of a new Hotel was commenced, and many new 
buildings were being erected as the cold weather set in. 

It is the centre " of one of the largest, unbroken tracts 
of beautiful, healthful, and productive farm claims of 
which the Territory can so justly boast. Its local nat- 
ural advantages are unsurpassed. The purest water can 
either be obtained from the living fountain, or by the 
sinkmg of wells to a depth less than twenty-five feet. — 
Stone for building purposes, of the finest quality and in 
4 



38 INFORMATION AND ADVICE 

inexhaustible quantities, abounds within the city limits. 
Brick of superior richness of coloring and hardness of 
finish, are furnished at the yard at less than six dollars 
per thousand. The purest limestone and sand for 
building, can readily be procured within the city limits 
and the immediate vicinity. Within a range of three 
miles from the city, several veins of stone coal have 
been opened which our smiths pronounce but little 
inferior to the Pittsburg, Pa. coal. Convenient to To- 
peka, there are large tracts of excellent timbered land. 
It is connected with all the prominent places in the 
Territory, by old and well travelled roads — among 
which is the regular established route from Indepen- 
dence, and Kanzas City, Mo., to California, making its 
crossing of the Kanzas River at this place, by the old 
and well known Papan Ferry." 

It was here that a Convention of Delegates assembled, 
and framed the Constitution of the projected State of 
Kanzas ; and here also the first Legislature under the 
Constitution, contemplate assembling on the fourth of 
March next. 

The Kaw land, over against Topeka, on the opposite 
side of the Kanzas River, ccuitains a fine tract of heavy 
timber, one mile in width, and twenty-one miles in 
length. 

Within a circuit of four miles around this town, there 
were by estimate, when the writer was there, a thousand 
acres of cornfields, Avhich at a very low calculation, would 
yield 25.000 bushels of grain ; a large amount consider- 
ing that is was on the sod, that a few months only 
had elapsed since the first furrow was cut, and that 
there was a constant demand on every one's time, for 
the multiplicity of purposes requiring attention at the 
birth of a settlement. 

A traveller in that region, about two months subse- 
quent to the period when the place was founded, 
writes, " passing a few cabins of actual settlers, we 
came upon a beautiful rise of ground, at the western 
end of a high and exceedingly rich bottom. Here is 



TO KANSAS IMMIGRANTS. 39 

situated the new City — Topeka. The right kind of 
men and enterprise are found here ; and though later 
in the start than her neighbors, she is thought to bid 
fair to equal any, and outstrip many, in the race for 
population. 

" As we rode west from the high ground on the out- 
skirts, we found ourselves in the midst of one of the 
most delightful farming countries I ever beheld ; and 
often, as from some new point the landscape would 
present itself in a new and more attractive view, the 
exclamation would escape from one and another ' How 
grand! What a glorious country!' Far to the south 
was the line of timber pointing out the path of the 
Wakarusa, a little rivulet now, but soon, when swollen 
with the spring rains, to be a mighty, impetuous river, 
coursing its way onward to join the Kanzas below 
Lawrence. Nearer rises a high mound, named, proba- 
bly on account of its imposing appearance and lofty 
grandeur, Webster Peak. To the north, lies the valley 
of the Kanzas with its rich bottoms and heavy forests. 
All the intervening country, for many miles in extent, 
is one of the most rich and rolling prairies that I ever 
beheld. It cannot be long ere the hand of industry 
and skill will convert this lovely country into an 
Eden." 

Manhattan. — This town is located on the fork of 
land made by the junction of the Big Blue with the 
Kanzas River. The location is a beautiful and highly 
advantageous one, and the men who formed it, are 
distinguished for their enterprise, perseverance, ener- 
getic powers, and moral worth. The view from the 
summit of Bhie Mont is magnificent, and it would be 
difficult to decide between this, and the panorama dis- 
played from Capitol Hill. Lawrence, to which, if 
either, the preference should be awarded. The rich 
prairies in the vicinity, and the nearness of a good 
market for all the surplus stock of grain that may be 
raised, the purity of the streams, the abundance of 
living springs that swell out upon the sides of the 



40 INFORMATION AND ADVICE 

valleys, all offer strong inducements to those in search 
of desirable locations here to establish themselves. 

The original association that formed this settlement 
consisted of a small number of individuals, mostly from 
New England. These afterwards were joined by 
another party from Ohio, who at first located a few 
miles west of Fort Riley, but were induced to abandon 
that site and remove here, by the liberal offers made 
them. 

Manhattan is 75 miles west of Lawrence, 125 miles 
from Kanzas city ; 15 miles E. of Fort Riley. This 
was, the past year, and probably will be for many years 
to come, a good market for all the produce that may 
be for sale, inasmuch as being a distributing post, it will 
have need of large supplies. The Commissary con- 
tracted the past season for 1200 tons of hay, paying 
for the same $7 per ton on the ground, $12 delivered 
at the Fort. Land yields from three to four tons to the 
acre, and much of the grass was to be had for the 
cutting. He also agreed to take all the corn procurable 
at $1.50 per bushel. 

The town and suburbs embrace about 1400 acres, 
which have been regularly platted. The main street 
is 100 feet, and the others 60 feet wide. Several parks 
or squares have been laid out in different sections of 
the town. The house lots are fifty feet front, by one 
hundred and fifty in depth. In one of the parks, a 
public well had just been completed when the writer 
was there. At twenty-six feet below the surface, a 
peat-bed, between layers of clay, was struck, and a 
foot deeper, the remnants of the trunk of a tree. 
Tusks and bones of supposed extinct animals have 
been dug up in the vicinity, as also above Fort Riley. 

Manhattan has the Kanzas River on the south, and 
the Big Blue on the east; the latter empties into the 
former near the town ; the Kanzas is a muddy stream, 
but the Blue is filled with clear, pure water. From 
Blue Mont, at the north, a splendid view may be had 
of the town, the rivers, and the neighboring region. 
By a circuitous bend of the Kanzas, an extensive 



TO KANZAS IMMIGRANTS. 41 

peninsula has been formed south of the town, which 
is admirably calculated ' for a stock farm; and by a 
bend of the Blue, first to the west and then to the 
south, aided by the Kanzas River, another peninsula is 
formed east of the town, bounded on the north and 
west by the Blue, and on the south by the Kanzas. 
Here, for a long period, was the head quarters of the 
Kaw Indians, and so continued to be until 1840, when 
by a sudden rise of the river, an inundation was caused, 
resulting in the loss of many lives, and the destruction 
of much property; on account of which the place was 
abandoned. 

The Settlement contains a large structure as a Town 
Hall, twenty Cincinnati built houses, and others of 
"domestic manufacture," a Saw Mill, and a Grist Mill. 
The soil in the town is eight feet deep. In the imme- 
diate vicinity are many beautiful farms ; as well as 
numerous prairie and wood claims, yet untaken. With- 
in 30 miles there is woodland, in tracts of one thousand 
acres. On the route thither, the writer passed through 
tall, thick grass, which ot\en completely hid from sight 
both horse and rider, and the latter could only with 
much difficulty, make any progress. Within a circuit 
of five miles, it is estimated there are at least six hun- 
dred inhabitants. 

Some of the finest farm claims in the Territory are 
to be found in this section, and particularly on Wild 
Cat creek, in the valley of the Big Blue, and on Cedar 
Creek and other of the tributaries of the Blue. 

The earliest settler here was Hon. Mr. Houston, who 
located in this region when no other than Indians were 
round about. He is a highly intelligent, strong-minded, 
clear headed, active and industrious person, who would 
be an accession to any place. 

Among the earliest who migrated from the E., and 
here selected a local habitation, was the Rev. I. T. 
Goodnow, a Teacher of repute, formerly the Principal 
of an Academy in E. Greenwich, R. I. In a letter by 
him written last Spring, respecting this place, he says: 
4* 



42 INFORMATION AND ADAICE 

" A City Association consisting of thirty-five persona has been 
formed at the junction of the Big Blue and Kanzas rivers. If pro- 
perly luanagad, and filled up with the same kind of men who are now 
here, it is destined to sway a large influence in the afiairs of this 
Territory. 

" Never have I seen a site possessing so many natural advantages — 
the beautiful with the practical — as this. It is situated at the base 
and between two high bluffi, one and a half miles apart. It is a 
beautiful plain extending from both rivers, and rising grudually into 
high lands between the two bluffs. The plain furnishes an excellent 
chance for stores and business, and the highlands for private resi- 
dences. The material for building is abundant in the shape of lime- 
stone in the bluffs. The surrounding country for a great distance is 
rich with sufficient timber for building purposes for years. The 
landings upon both rivers are good ; and the military road from Fort 
Leavenworth to Fort Ililey, and the Central Railroad to the Pacific 
must both pass through the place, as the great natural highway 
pointed out by the finger of Omnipotence. 

" The country around is filling up with the right kind of settlers. 
The distance from the borders is such, 130 miles, and the journey has 
been so trying, that we get the wheat, while the chaft'of emigration 
blows aAvay, or does not reach us. We still have fine claims open near 
us ; but we particularly need men of capital and business tact to give 
their entire attention to city affairs. The present occupants care 
more for their farm claims than city interests ; hence the fine oppor- 
tunity for tradesmen, &c. 

" It is a great country, and multitudes are flocking in ; yet ' still 
there is room.' Here is a field to labor, worthy of the most talented, 
the best of men. But we must have men, not afraid of hard work, 
willing to rough it. ' Where there is a will, there is a way- ' Though 
confined to tlie shade, the school-room, for the last eighteen years, 
I find myself a match in hardship and endurance, for the strongest, 
most robust men." 

The writer had the pleasure of tarrying a short time 
with Mr. Goodnow. and his farm bore indubitable evi- 
dence that it was under the control of no idler. His 
corn appeared to have been subjected by him to the 
process that young ideas formerly were, and had in 
consequence learned to shoot ; for it stood 12 and 14 
feet high ; and corn from tJds year's seed, 3 feet high ; 
pumpkins and water melon vines, al^ from this year's 
seed, were going ahead rapidly. Mr. L. observed that 
corn, without planting would yield 20 to 30 bushels to 
the acre ; on the sod, 40 to 50 bushels ; and the second 
year from 75 to 100 bushels. 

With such men as the two named, and their asso- 



FOR KANZAS IMMIGRANTS. 43 

ciatcs T)r. Hunting, Messrs. Pifer and Thurston, the - 
Rev. Messrs. Dennison, Blood, Lovejoy and others, this 
Place cinnot but prove prosperous. 

Hampden.— This is situated fifty miles due South of 
Lawrence, on the Neosho river, near the great crossing 
of the Indian trail, which leads S. from Fort Leaven- 
worth, and extends across to Wolf Creek. It was first 
"settled upon" by a company of ninety individuals, 
chictly from Hampden Co., Mass. ; hence its name. 
They- commenced operations on the 27th. of April, 
1855. One of the residents, under date of July 18th. 
says : '' I have a store where I keep most of the neces- 
saries of life, for sale at fair prices. I have ox-teams 
leaviwg here every Monday for Kanzas City, and also 
returning leave Kanzas every Monday, carrying freight 
for $1,25 pr. hundred, and passengers for $5, including 
board. We have good covered waggons, and fnrnish 
camp utensils, provisions and blankets, and shall try to 
make travellers as comfortable as possible. The teams 
always carry the mails with them. Passengers wishing 
to come will do well to apply Saturday morning, as the 
teams will "usually leave Kanzas City on Saturday, and 
come out in the evening on to the Prairie, and there 
spend the Sabbath. We feel great need of a Physi- 
cian. We have the gospel preached to us, and our 
people in general feel quite contented, and would not 
leave Hampden for any other place in the world." 

Persons who may be going there without a guide, 
should take the Santa Fe road to Black Jack, thence to 
the General Agency, and from there by the head of 
Long Creek to the point of destination. 

The Company originally selected a site one mile 
wide, and two long, on the high lands between the 
Neosho river and Wolf creek, for a town ; around this 
is located a township six miles square, through the 
entire length of which the streams above mentioned 
pass, on their way to the Arkansas. 

At this Settlement an excellent Saw-mill has recent- 
ly been erected of a sufficient capacity to furnish all 
the lumber at present required. 



44 INFORMATION AND ADVICE 

OsAWATOMiE. — This town "is situated upon the 
Osage river, about one hundred miles from its source, 
in the midst of a growing country, unequalled in the 
character of its soil and climate — is connected with 
Kanzas City, Mo., by two excellent lines of stages, and 
at high water with St. Louis by the river. Possessing 
a steam Saw Mill, lately erected at the cost of $12,000, 
and with other improvements of a similar nature in 
progress, this town seems to be the centre around which 
the wealth and energy of that section is gathering." 

The site was selected by Samuel C. Pomeroy, Esq., 
in 1855 ; it was surveyed and platted by A. D. Searl, 
of Lawrence, and under the judicious management of 
O. C. Brown, who has the spirit of go-ahead-ativeness 
largely developed, it is rapidly increasing in size, num- 
bers, and influence. A newspaper is about being pub- 
lished, and an Academy for teaching the ordinary, the 
higher, and the ornamental branches of Education will 
soon be established there. It has a good house of en- 
tertainment, the best as regards ''comforts" in the 
Territory; a blacksmith's shop, and several stores. It 
is in a section that is said to be more heavily timbered 
than any other in the Territory. In addition to the 
ordinary forest trees, red cedar and sugar maple are 
here found. 

It is located in the forks of the Osage, between the 
Mara is de Cygnes and the Polawatomie branches. It 
is 50 miles from Kanzas City, Mo., and the same dis- 
tance from Lawrence, K. T.; the three places forming 
a triangle. 

The name is Yankee Indian, derived from Osage 
and Potawatomie. A writer under the signature of Old 
Settler, says: "this Place is located on the Osage, 
one mile above its junction with Potawatomie creek. 
For three miles their course is but about one mile 
apart, and the divide gets up so high as to overlook the 
heavily timbered bottoms of the two rivers and their 
branches. Upon this high Prairie, skirted on each side 
with oak openings and ridges, lies half of the town site 



TO KANZAS IMMIGRANTS. 



45 



of Osawatomie. The other portion is sixty feet above 
the bed of the rivet. Here there is a great abundance 
of timber of the best quality, limestone, coal, brick, 
clay, 6oC. Already houses of good style are built. For 
some months regular religious services, conducted by 
Rev. Mr. Adair, Congregationalist, and Mr. Finch of 
the Methodist Episcopal Church, and supplies from 
outside by the Baptist clergy have been enjoyed there. 
A Sunday School has also been in operation, The 
inhabitants are from almost every State in the Union ; 
but the town was commenced and is carried on chiefly 
by New Yorkers, Eastern, and Western men. A deep 
cut is made in the banks of the streams for the cross- 
ings ; and a ferry-boat has been placed upon the Osage. 
I will close this brief letter by saying that the people 
in these parts came here to stay. They are pleased 
with the climate, soil and country, and nothing seems 
to trouble them but the fact that they are at present 
deprived of their political rights." 

Leavenworth. — This is situated on the same range 
of hills with, and three miles S. of. Fort Leavenworth, 
and is secured by a rock bound bluff. Its extent along 
the river is one mile. The claims, on which the town 
is situated, were located June 11th. 1854. The Asso- 
ciation was formed on the 13th. with thirty-two original 
members, afterwards increased to over one hundred. 
The town was divided into one hundred and seventy- 
five shares. It is handsomely laid out in blocks, with 
streets running in parallel lines N. and S., and E. and 
W. 

The first building was completed and occupied Sep- 
tember 15th. 1854 ; now, Jan. 1856, there are three 
hundred and seven buildings, including stores, groceries 
and boarding houses, two well furnished livery stables, 
and a saw-mill, the receipts from which, clear of all 
expenses, are said to be 200 per cent. Some of the 
mercantile houses, according to report, dispose of from 
$30,000 to $40,000 worth of goods of various descrip- 
tions. The number of inhabitants are about fifteen 
hundred. 



46 INFORMATION AND ADVICE 

The Methodist Church South, and the Northern 
Methodists, Old School Presbyterians, Baptists, Luther- 
ans, and Catholics hold regular worship here. There 
were two newspapers printed here; viz., the Territorial 
Register^ which, a few months since, was violently 
taken possession of, and thrown into the river, on ac- 
count of its too liberal principles, and the Kanzas 
Weekly Herald, a strong pro-slavery print, which we 
presume still is in operation. 

Leavenworth commands the trade of the surrounding 
region for some distance. It is said to hold out great 
inducements to the merchant, mechanic, and poor man. 

This site has been supposed to be within the Indian 
reserve, and therefore immigration to it has not been 
recommended ; the question is not yet satisfactorily de- 
cided ; though as it is publicly announced that there 
are $13,000 in the Treasury, to meet any liability in 
procuring a title, it is probable, whether in or out of 
the Reserve, those now in possession, will retain it. 

Council City. — For the following notice of Council 
City, we are indebted to a gentleman for whom we 
have great regard, and who is amply qualified to judge 
in the case. He says, 

" This place was located under the auspices of the American Set- 
tlement Company of the City of New York. It is located in the 
circle formed by the Switzler and Dragoon Creeks. This circle is 
made by the general course of these Creeks, much after the 
shape of the arms when the hands are brought together; the widest 
place being at the elbows. The confluence of these streams is al)out 
eight mih's beloAv their affluence. The City Site is about the centre 
on a beautiful and inclining plane, and perhaps is not surpassed for 
eligibility for a town, in the Territory. 

The great 'Sante Fe Road,' passes through very nearly the 
centre. East and West; and is intended to pass directly through the 
City 8ite. Council City is about 90 miles west of Kanzas City, Mo.; 
forty miles South-West from Lawrence ; twenty miles South of 
Topcka and the Kanzas River ; sixty-five miles South-East from Fort 
Riley ; forty miles East from Council Grove, and equi distant from 
the Northern and Southern lines of the Territory. It has good 
water, both from springs and wells ; the average depth of the wells 
are about twenty feet. Coal of a good quality is found in great 
abundance, cropping out on the banks of the creeks. A good 
breadth of tiuabor linos these streams, varying in width from 



TO KANZAS IMMIGRANTS. 



47 



half to U "ii^c« 5 generally hard timber, cedar, and the black 
walnut, the latter grows large ; often three feet across at the butt. 
It is computed that there is from six to eight thousand acres of tim- 
ber in a radius of four or six miles. The best of hme stone quarries 
abound, laying up to the surface, and quarried out at a small ex- 
pense, suitable for buildings, lime, or fence. There has also been 
a marble quarry discovered within eight or ten miles of tiiis city, 
said to be very beautiful and abundant. It is believed the only 
marble that has been as yet discovered in the Territory. This of 
itself would be suiScieut to claim the Capitol buildings at this point. 
I must not be understood as putting in a special plea for this city as 
entitled to the Capitol of the new State, that must ere long come forth 
from the occidental settlement of this wild, but most lovely country. 

Like most of the new towns that have been laid off, it is sur- 
rounded by a very large and rich agricultural district, with gentle 
■rolling, undulating prj^iries. 

There is a population at this point, in a circuit of six miles, of 
about one thousand. And affording still great inducements for set- 
tlers wishing either Country or Town investments. The inhabitants 
composing this settlement are mostly from the Eastern States, and of 
a moral and intelligent character." 

One of the most recently founded Free State Settle- 
ments is that of Millard, respecting which the follow- 
ing statement has been furnished us : — 

*' Millard — The site of Millard was selected by a 
Compaijy from Cincinnati, Ohio, and named in honor 
of Capt. David Millard, one of the early steamboat 
pioneers, who explored and ascended the River with the 
Steamer ' Hartford,' in the summer of 1855. 

The town is situated upon a gentle slope in the forks 
of the Kanzas River, adjoining the U. S. Military Re- 
servation, near Fort Riley, in the midst of a beautiful 
and fertile country, and is the highest navigable point on 
the River. It is 140 miles from Kanzas City, 130 
from Leavenworth, and 100 miles from Lawrence. 

The overland route, and U. S. Military roads to 
Sante Fe and California, and the Utah and Oregon 
trails, pass directly through the town. 

In consequence of this great inland traffic, all kinds 
of produce bring high prices, with an increasing de- 
mand. 

The Fort, also, affords an excellent market for all 
the products of the farmer. 



48 INFORMATION AND ADVICE 

The prices of produce, at this point, are not affected 
by competition from Missouri. 

The Millard Association, with a view of supplying, 
with manufactured articles, the outfitting trade of the 
interior, and the vast travel across the barren wastes of 
Western Kanzas, was incorporated October 3d. 1855, 
under the name of ' The Cincinnati and Kanzas Man- 
ufacturing Company,' with an authorized capital of 
$250,000, and will carry out its design by establishing 
manufactories, and the encouragement of all kinds of 
mechanics. 

Its attention, however, will first be directed to fur- 
nishing Mills and other convenien(*es for the use of 
settlers, in the vicinity. 

The disadvantages often experienced by settlers in a 
new country of being deprived for a long time of 
schools, churches, &c., will be obviated, as there will 
soon be here all the privileges of an old and densely 
populated country. 

There are many desirable claims yet open near by, 
and to the farmer, merchant, and mechanic, this point 
offers unusual inducements. Timber, and fine building 
stone abound in the vicinity, as, also, all the material 
for concrete houses, which is easily and cheaply ob- 
tained. The Osage Orange hedge for fencing is adapted 
to the soil and climate, and can be grown at a trifling 
expense. 

A railroad from Fort Leavenworth on the Missouri 
River to Fort Riley is already projected, and will soon 
be built ; and to obtain suitable grounds ior depots, 
shops, (fcc, must go through the reservation, to the 
town. 

The Pacific Railroad, now open from St. Louis to 
Jefferson City, will be completed into Kanzas in a few 
years ; passing up the south side of the River through 
Kanzas City and Lawrence, and along the divides, 
crossing the River at the confluence of the Smoky 
Hill and Republican forks. 

The terminus of this great enterprise will probably 



TO KANZAS IMMIGRANTS. 49 

be for many years somewhere in this vicinity, near the 
western limit of the fertile domain, before crossing 
the barren wastes to the smiling borders of the Pacific." 

German Settlement. — This is sitnated on Upper 
Mill Creek. It consisted in October last of abont fifty 
claimants, most of whom had planted crops of corn and 
potatoes. According to Mr. Hohenick, the entire popu- 
lation are pleased with the country, thinking it equal in 
fertility to any land in the Union. He reports excellent 
water-power for mills, and a good supply of timber. 
The signs of bituminous coal are good, and he says that 
when the veins are opened, there will be sufficient for 
extensive manufacturing operations. 

We would call the attention of German immigrants 
to this location, believing, from our own personal know- 
ledge of the neighboring region, that it is a highly ad- 
vantageous one. 

We are desirous of giving some account of the numer- 
ous other Free State settlements, as well as a more 
complete one of those herein referred to; but we are 
not now so well prepared as we wish to be for the pur- 
pose. It is our intention to give a somewhat minute 
description hereafter, if some good friends at each place 
will aid us in collecting the requisite materials. 

The inquiry may be made, to which of the above- 
named settlements does the Company give a prefer- 
ence ? To which would they advise settlers to direct their 
course ? We answer, the Company neither persuades 
persons to go to, nor dissuades them from settling at, 
either ; each has its advantages, each its peculiarities ; 
and whatever might be the opinion of the Company, 
every individuul would or ought to select the one or the 
other, or avoid all, as his own interest dictates. 

The Company, it should he distinctly understood, is 
sending to Kanzas ; it knows neither North, South, East^ 
nor West, to the exclusion of the remainder ; it is desir- 
ous of seeing the whole peopled with good men and 
true, who will maintain their own rights, and resj)ect 
those of others ; who, whilst they resolutely resist being 
5 



50 INFORMATION AND ADVICE 

encroached upon by the lawless and reckless, whence- 
soever they may come, will carefully refrain from com- 
mitting unjust acts, or uttering harsh epithets against 
others, simply for a difFerence of opinion ; who, save in 
extreme cases, will rely for victory upon the teachings 
of the Bible and instructions of the Ballot-box, instead 
of the influence of the bottle and destructiveness of the 
musket ; discarding the bottle altogether, and reserving 
the musket as a dernier resort. 

Religion and Education. — At Lawrence there are 
several regularly constituted Religious Societies of vari- 
ous denominations ; viz : Congregationalists, Unitarians, 
Methodists, Baptists, and United Brethren. A free school 
is established there, in which the ordinary branches are 
taught, and measures are in train to found an Academy 
for instruction in the higher branches. An Athenaeum 
has also been instituted ; by members of which, discus- 
sions are regularly held, and lectures delivered. Con- 
nected with this Institution is a Public Library. Sun- 
day School Libraries also exist there. 

AH of these means, for securing and elevating the 
mental and moral condition of the community, have 
made considerable advancement, and will soon be in full 
operation at Topeka^ and the other settlements of the 
Company. The powerful influence for good exerted by 
these, is clearly manifest. The writer met many on 
their way, in pursuit of a new home, who wished to be 
directed where they could find a Yankee settlement ; 
giving as a reason for the inquiry, that they Avished to 
locate near one, being thus sure of a school for their 
children, and of religious services on the Sabbath. 

In behalf of each and all, the Secretary earnestly 
solicits contributions in money or books ; the former he 
will endeavor judiciously to convert into books ; of the 
latter, almost every one has more or less, which, having 
done their mission here, ivill still prove of exceeding 
value, for a similar purpose, in our new settlements. 
If the Secretary'' s efforts are approved and seconded by 
our friends here, he will be enabled to transmit to the 



TO KANZAS IMMIGRANTS. 51: 

Territory^ hij every Pariy^ a package^ the contents of 
which may prove of incalculable importance to our 
friends there. 

Game. — Game is quite abundant in some sections of 
the Territory, lliough but little occurs in others. Sev- 
eral varieties of squirrels, ducks, geese, turkies, prairie 
hens, ifcc, were seen by the writer. In the Neosho val- 
ley, and other parts, deer are found. Herds of buflalo 
were within sight from Fort Riley, while the writer 
was in that section, although the present regular range 
of this animal, which is likely soon to become extinct, 
is farther W. and N. W. 

The streams abound with gar, buffalo, whitefish, and 
a large variety of others. 

Arms. — Should they be taken along for protection 
against Indians, for hunting, &c. ? Our opinion of the 
red man has already been given ; viz : as a general rule, 
if treated kindly and met as a man, he will behave like 
a man ; but if treated like a wild beast, you must ex- 
pect him to conduct like one. Still, as impositions are 
constantly being practised on him, and trespasses com- 
mitted upon his rights, by vagabonds of our own race — 
of instances of which we ourselves have had repeated 
cognizance = — it is not impossible, though hardly proba- 
ble, that some roving bands from the distant plains, or 
fastnesses of the Rocky Mountains, may, under exas- 
peration, make their appearance on the borders ; and as 
" an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure," 
and ''discretion is the better part of valor," it would be 
well for all to go prepared for such emergencie-s. 

Besides, it would be somewhat vexatious to a hungry 
man (and one who intends to be a pioneer m,ust expect 
often to he a-hungcred) to see game fleeting by him, 
which might liave furnished him many a good meal, 
and be none the better for it, because, presuming there 
was no use for powder and ball, he went to his new 
home without them. Thus did not the hardy pioneers 
of the days of our ancestors. Moreover, wolves, rat- 
tlesnakes, and other reptiles of various forms, will be 



52 INFORMATION AND ADVICE 

occasionally encountered, or be detected around the 
claims ; and although the former, like many enemies in 
human shape, who make much noise, are great cowards, 
and seldom attack one, excepting when they are sure 
of an advantage, it is advisable to be prepared to give 
them a warm reception. 

Whether there may be any other use for arms, the 
writer, perhaps, is not qualified to judge ; but, in accord- 
ance with the old Latin maxim, that it is permitted to 
be taught by an enemy, he thinks it sufficient, and will 
probably be perfectly satisfactory to inquirers, to adduce 
the opinion of the Hon. David R. Atchison, on this 
point. In a Letter of very recent date, to a gentleman 
at the South, he says : 

'' Let your youn^ men come forth to Missouri and 
Kanzas ! Let them come well armed, with money 
enough to support them for twelve months, and deter- 
mined to see this thing out! One hundred true fnen 
will be an acquisition ! The inore the better.''^ 

" We want men — armed men. SVe want money; 
not for ourselves, but to support our friends who may 
come from a distanced 

*' Let your young men come on in squads, as fast as 
they can be raised^ well armed. We want nojie but 
true Tnen.^^ 

Such is the advice of one wha, we are told, '• has oc- 
cupied, for a quarter of a century at least, an eminently 
high position among the statesmen of the Union, and 
who, in the Senate of -the United States, over which 
he presided with so much satisfaction to that body, 
fairly earned a reputation of which few can boast " The 
advice of such an one, on the present subject of inquiry, 
it would ill become us to gainsay. 

We cannot refrain from quoting this gentleman's con- 
cluding sentiment, and most cordially reiterating his 
hope : 

"TT^e hope that there will be an uprising of tJie people 
in every county and town in the State, and that while 
our young men ivill in hundreds respond to the call of 



TO KANZAS IMMIGRANTS. 53 

Ka?izaSj the old and the weallJiy will give that aid, 
ivhich if icitlihcld ivill keep from '• there' many a daunt- 
less spirit, brave hearty and strong arm.'''* 

Size of Parties. — Parties, for their own comfort and 
convenience, shonld not exceed one hundred persons ; 
and a larger number the Company does not advise to 
go at once ; neither is there a necessity for it, as at least 
weekly opportunities will be furnished ; indeed, one- 
half that number would be still better. The capacity 
and accommodations of the Missouri river Boats vary ; 
but a certain ji umber can be well cared for ; and the 
Company discountenances any unreasonable crowding 
on board of those Boats ; it possesses not the magic 
power, as some unreasonably think, of enlarging the 
Boats' capacity to correspond with a Party's wants, or 
desires. The Agents therefore are enjoined against 
countenancing or permitting, so far as they can exercise 
a control, one over the proper number, from taking pas- 
sage in any Boat ; if a contrary course be persisted in, 
however, it must be at the risk of those ivho will not be 
advised ; and not on the responsibility of the Company. 

As nevertheless there will unquestionably be for some 
time a great rush, and Parties will be very large, not- 
withstanding the advice of the Company, every one who 
goes must be content to submit to various inconven- 
iences, more especially in the Boats and at the Houses 
of Entertainment where they may temporarily stop. 

Those who go out early in the Spring will of course 
meet with more annoyance than those who leave later; 
but, on the other hand, they will have a greater choice 
as regards location, and will sooner enjoy the right of 
exercising the glorious privileges of freemen ; a matter 
of great moment to them^ and of vast 7noment to all 
who may subsequently become citizens of the Territory. 

Temporary Organizations. — Parties are advised to 
pursue the course of those who went out last season, 
and form on the route, (whilst Steamboating it up from 
St. Louis, or previously,) some temporary organization 
for the benefit of all. 
5* 



54 INFORMATION AND ADVICE 

By doing this, and appointing committees to act for 
all, there will be little danger, of what many fear, that 
undue advantages will be taken of them by cattle and 
produce dealers at Kanzas City and elsewhere. Should 
impositions be attempted, by deputing certain individ- 
uals of shrewdness and good judgment to go to the 
towns a little removed from the river borders and make 
the requisite purchases, sellers will soon find it for their 
interest to deal justly and act uprightly ; and none but 
fair prices will be demanded. In these cases, as in all 
others of doubt, take counsel of the Coinpany's Agents ; 
as your and their interests are not antagonistic. 

Modes of Communication. — All Letters sent to the 
care of Samuel C. Pomeroy, Esq., Kanzas City, Mo., 
will be forwarded, as opportunies offer, to the individ- 
ual's address. Those intended for Lawrence, Topeka, 
or Leavenworth. K. T., may be addressed direct, as a 
Post Office has been established at each of these Places. 
In cases requiring more speedy communication, advan- 
tage can be taken of the Telegraph, as an Office is es- 
tablished at Kanzas City, by means of which intelli- 
gence may be speedily conveyed to, or received from, 
all prominent points throughout New England, the 
Western, Middle, and Southern States. 

Company's Aid. — To correct an error that exten- 
sively prevails, it is well to slate, what may be inferred 
from our introductory remarks, that the Company fur- 
nishes no direct pecuniary aid to individi^als. Its main 
objects are not eleemosynary or charitable, in the ordi- 
nary acceptation of the word, — but philanthropic. It 
has not the means to assist, nor, had it, could its officers 
devote the requisite time to investigating the merits of 
individual cases ; these must be left to the care of the 
local auxiliary Leagues, which are recommended, if 
they extend a helping hand, to aid, not by gift, but by 
loan. 

The Company's means have been, and if continued 
to them, will be, employed to encourage the formation 
of settlements, and to advance the prosperity and pro- 



TO KANZAS IMMIGRANTS. 55 

mote the welfare of the various communities that may- 
be established ; in a word, to make, as far and as fast 
as possible, each place, a settlement of freemen, by in- 
troducing such conveniences, founding and encouraging 
such institutions and establishments, as now charac- 
terize New England homes, and such as the true prin- 
ciples of Freedom and the pure spirit of Liberty invari- 
bly show are so essential to the perpetuity of good 
Governments, and prove absolutely requisite for securing 
and sustaining the greatest good of the greatest number. 

The Company deals with persons as constituting 
Communities ; the Auxiliary Societies or local Leagues 
deal with thmn in their individual capacities. 

Sources of Information. Newspapers. — Those 
who are desirous of procuring a large amount of infor- 
mation at a small expense, and of being kept posted up 
on Territorial affairs, should subscribe to the Kanzas 
Herald of Freedom, published weekly at Lawrence, 
K. T. ; the first volume, just completed, contains a 
greater quantity of material of a practical character than 
is elsewhere to be found. Ttie second volume was 
commenced, on the ninth of the present month, (Feb.) 
this, therefore is a favorable time for subscribing. By 
sending address and subscription, ($2,) to the Secretary, 
the Paper will in due time be forwarded. 

We believe " The F\-ee State " is also still continued 
at Lawrence. At Topeka are published '* The Kanzas 
Tribune," and " The Kanzas P^-eeman ; " at Osawato- 
mie, " The Osawatomie Times." 

Books. — Rev. Edward E. Hale, of Worcester, Mass., 
has prepared a work entitled " Kanzas and Nebraska," 
and Rev. O. Boynton, of Cincinnati, another, styled 
"Journey through Kanzas;" both of these deserve a 
perusal. Price of each in paper covers, 50 cts. ,* in cloth 
binding, 75 cts. 

Maps. — No satisfactory Map has as yet appeared; 
neither can an accurate one be constructed until the 
Territory has been surveyed. A Map, which may an- 
swer for general purposes, although it presents many 



56 INFORMATION AND ADVICE 

inaccuracies, has been published by J. H. Colton, New- 
York ; price 25 cents. Another one, which we have 
not seen, but judge to be at least as good, from the 
character of the gentleman by whom it was constructed, 
Lieut. S. Eastman, U, S. A., has been more recently 
issued by a Philadelphia house. 

Plans. — A Plan of Lawrence has been published 
from actual survey; price, mounted and varnished, 
$1,25; in sheets, on drawing paper, 75 cents ; on bank 
note paper, suitable for mailiiig, 50 cents. 

Any of the preceding may be had by addressing the 
Secretary, postage paid, inclosing the price, (and If to 
be transmitted by mail, the amount of additional cost,) 
in current money or postage stamps. 



APPENDIX. 

Plats have been published of Osawatomic, of Millard, and, 
we understand, of Manhattan — perhaps also of other of the 
Settlements ; of this, however, we have no knowledge. 

SuRVEYor^, General's Office. — The President has or- 
dered this to be removed from Wj^andot to Lecompton. 

Freight. — For general directions see p. 6. When sent 
by the Great Western Railroad route, Packages should be 
marked as follows, viz. : 



G. W. R. I [Owner's name here.] 
Time. Kanzas City, Mo. 



via. Joliet. Care of F. A. Hunt & Co., 

No. 19, Levee, St. Louis. 

Bills of Lading for this route will be furnished at No. 21 
State Street. Guarantied time, 20 days. Present rates, 
$2.45 per 100 lbs. 

Post Offices. — Post Offices have been established at the 
following settlements ; and Post Routes were to be in opera- 
tion to them on and after January 1st. 1856, viz. : Big 
Springs, Blanton, Council City, Easton, Grasshopper Falls, 
Juniata, Lawrence, Leavenworth City, Manhattan, Ocena, 
Osawatomic, Topeka, Waubonse. 



KANZAS IMMIGRANTS. 57 

Diet. — Persons cannot be too cautious in regard to tins, 
more especially whilst on the Boats of the Western Rivers. 
The style of living differs so essentially from that to which 
most have been accustomed, and there is so much to tempt 
end pamper the appetite, that very few can indulge freely, 
without suffering some inconvenience, and often very serious 
consequences. The only prudent, as well as the safest course, 
is to select the plainest food, cooked in the simplest manner. 

Labor. — We think there will be considerable demand for 
most kinds of labor the present year, at the various Settle- 
ments ; certainly at Lawrence and Topeka, Mdiere many 
buildings, private and public, will be erected. 

Wages. — These of course must vary much with the wants 
of the employer, and the qualifications of the employee. At 
Fort Riley, where Government the past year has been erect- 
ing extensive stables, and other buildings, giving employ- 
ment to many hundreds of mechanics and laboring men, the 
rates when the writer was there in September last were as 
follows, viz. : Common laborers received 81,50 per day and 
board. Ordinary Masons ^2,40 per day and board, Master 
Masons and Master Lime Burners $3,00 per day and board, 
Wood Choppers, 81,25 per day and board. Teamsters, $1,00 
per day, the year round, and board ; they having nothing to 
do with loading and unloading of the teams. 



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